You can either lookup the character using one of the provided methods on this page. As a shortcut you can paste a character in the search box on top of this page or click open the search dialog with the button next to it. The result will consist of the character or it's simplified version, the meaning, the character mnemonics, possible references to other similar characters and possible alternatives for the given character with the same meaning. Each character can be clicked. You can thus find out how a character is mnemonically structured. Finally you can also click through the characters in the lists provided in the Lists menu. Hoovering over a character will popup a window that shows some information like pronounciation. Hoovering over the dot next to the mnemonic shows the author.
The results given back are limited to the Jouyou-kanji in Japanese and the 6000 most used characters in Chinese. If you toggle the All-button it will show all results.
Don't forget to install the necessary fonts to view this website. See this page for the fonts you need. Alternatively you can also toggle the Img-button on top which will replace every character by a picture. Beware: this can be quite heavy on your browser, which might burn your PC, your house and family: I will not be liable! I'm using the HanaZono font with kind permission by it's author.
This site has been developed with modern browsers in mind. We recommend the latest version of Firefox for correct rendering of it's content though Chrome should work as well.
If you are studying Chinese or Japanese, you can find lists of characters ordered by difficulty in the Lists section of the site. You can also find practice sheets for characters in the Study section of the site with mnemonics and stroke order.
Do you have a better character story to tell? You can now submit it for addition to this site by clicking the S next to the main character. I will add these when I have time and your authorship will be shown when you hoover over the dot next to the mnemonic.
If you have suggestions or are interested in helping feel free to contact me.