The kanji 根 primarily means "root," the part of a plant that anchors it in the ground and absorbs water and nutrients. It represents the foundation, origin, or source of something, both literally and figuratively. It can extend to mean the basis or cause of something, or the underlying core of an idea or concept.

・On-yomi (音読み): コン (kon) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): ね (ne)

⚫︎ 根本 (こんぽん) Translation: foundation, basis, root ⚫︎ 根っこ (ねっこ) Translation: root (of a plant) ⚫︎ 根気 (こんき) Translation: perseverance, patience

The kanji 根 is a phono-semantic compound (形声文字, keisei moji). The radical (部首, bushu) is 木 (ki, "tree" or "wood"), which provides the semantic component, indicating that the character relates to something connected with trees or plants. The other part, 艮, gives the phonetic component, suggesting the pronunciation. It originally depicted the roots of a tree underground. Over time, it developed the broader meaning of "root," "origin," or "foundation."