Meaning

Primary

To Divide

Alternatives

To Split Something, To Break Something

Word Type

transitive verb, godan verb

Explanation

Because the hiragana ends with an う sound, you know this word is a verb. The kanji itself means divide so the verb vocab version is to divide or to split something.

It can also mean to break something, as in ワイングラスを割る (to break a wine glass). After all, you’re technically dividing the object into parts if you break it, right?

Reading

わる
  • Kyoko
    (Tokyo accent, female)
  • Kenichi
    (Tokyo accent, male)

Explanation

The reading you learned with the kanji is the one you'll use here. It's the わ one, though, making it わる.

Context

Context Sentences

七割る二の答えって、三余り一であってる?

Is the answer to "seven divided by two," three with a remainder of one?

ごめんなさい、お皿を割ってしまいました。

I’m sorry, I broke the plate.

コウイチは空手チョップで百枚の瓦を真っ二つに割ってみせた。

Koichi showed that he could break one hundred roofing tiles right in half with a karate chop.

Kanji Composition