Hello,

What should I do if I know how to write a kanji, but not whether it is used in a certain word.

Japanese kanji have many pronunciations, so when I come across a new word and am prompted to write it, dozens of kanji could be the right answer. For example if the word contains はつ it could be 初　発　髪 etc.

Here's an example: 正解　せいかい right answer

正 is also in 正しい　ただしい　correct/right/just
解 is also in 解く とく　to solve

I would have already known how to write both of them from the previous word, but that doesn't help me at all with those two new words. Even in Kanji compounds it is not guaranteed, 正 can also be pronounced しょう as in 正直.

Another good example is めちゃくちゃ　目茶苦茶

Obviously, I know all three of those Kanji, but they have -nothing- to do with the meaning, so I wouldn't know they were in the word - I don't feel like I should have to fail 目 writing because of that.

I feel like this is messing with my statistics.

I'm not sure if its the same in Japanese, but in Chinese you can mark the character correct while marking the word wrong - on both the app and web versions there is a separate grading button under the word which is independent of the character. This is what I do when I get known characters in a new word.

Learning readings of kanji I think should be a subconscious byproduct of learning them in words and how they are used, so I think you shouldn't worry about it and just go with the flow. I suggest adding at least 5 words that use the same kanji so you aren't seeing it used the same way.

As far as a word being able to be any kanji using the same reading like 初　発　髪, I'm not sure I necessarily agree. For instance if the word was 発売 or "sale", made of the kanji 'departure/sending' and 'sale', one probably wouldn't think it's 髪売 which is the kanji for 'hair' and 'sale', or 初売 made of 'first/new' and 'sale'.

With 四字熟語 (four character idioms) and a lot of expressions that don't make sense with the just the meanings of the kanji, there's usually a　語源 (word origin) behind it, like a story explaining the expression or idiom. With 目茶苦茶 there are actually other older spellings like 滅茶苦茶 and 無茶苦茶 which might explain the origin better (where when a tea plant bears no tea, the tea that will sprout will be bitter, i.e. no tea bitter tea), and that 目茶苦茶 might be a sort of ateji word play, and so 目 might not make the most sense. Someone joked that the meaning is: 目にお茶を入れた所、非常に苦しかったので思わず「お茶ぁぁぁぁ！」と叫んだ事が由来。 (When you get tea in your eye it's extremely painful so you yell out お茶！ hence 目茶苦茶)

Hi, thanks for the replies guys. This solves the problem.

I'd also like to point out I somehow missed this hint section in my time using Skritter: http://i.imgur.com/XoWEGaY.png