The kanji 浅 primarily conveys the meaning of "shallow" or "superficial." It describes something that is not deep, either physically (like water) or figuratively (like understanding or feeling). It can also indicate something that is slight or not intense.

・On-yomi (音読み): セン (sen) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): あさ (asa)

⚫︎ 浅い川 Translation: shallow river ⚫︎ 浅い知識 Translation: superficial knowledge ⚫︎ 浅見 Translation: a shallow view

The kanji 浅 is a phono-semantic compound (形声文字, けいせいいもじ). It combines the semantic element of water, represented by the radical 氵(also written as 水), and the phonetic element 戔 (せん), which indicates the sound and contributes to the meaning of small or few. The radical 氵(water) suggests the shallow aspect, as it is used to describe the shallowness of water. The component戔also indicates the state of being small. This composition creates the meaning of shallow water, which then extends to the broader concept of "shallow" in general.