The kanji 麗 generally conveys a sense of beauty, loveliness, and elegance. It suggests something that is beautiful in appearance, refined, and often associated with something that is pleasing to the senses. It can also imply clarity or brightness, evoking a sense of something pristine and untouched.

・On-yomi (音読み): レイ (rei) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): うるわ（しい） (uruwa(shii))

⚫︎美しい (utsukushii) Translation: Beautiful ⚫︎麗しい (urewashii) Translation: Beautiful, lovely, graceful. ⚫︎綺麗 (kirei) Translation: Pretty, clean, beautiful. While 綺麗 is a common word, it uses a different kanji for "ki," but it shares a similar meaning related to beauty and aesthetics.

The kanji 麗 is a phono-semantic compound (形声文字, けいせいもじ). The phonetic component is 麗 itself (simplified form, originally 麗), and the semantic component is believed to relate to the concept of the quality and quantity of the feathers and the beautiful appearance. The original form depicts the process of drying the feather, which means to attach and to be beautiful. Thus, the kanji originally depicts the feathers attached to something and has the connotation of beauty or decoration. Over time, it came to be associated with general concepts of beauty, elegance, and clarity.