1.
iron pot, cauldron
A large metal cooking pot, traditionally made of iron, used for cooking rice and other dishes.
Usage
- In modern Japan the 炊飯器 (rice cooker) has largely replaced the traditional 釜, though the cooker's inner pot is still called 内釜.
- In compounds, 釜 is also the heating unit of a bath or boiler: 風呂釜 (bath heater).
Common expressions
- ご飯を釜で炊く: to cook rice in a traditional pot
- 同じ釜の飯を食う: to have lived and worked side by side (literally, to eat rice from the same pot)
Writing
- 釜: iron pot for cooking
- 窯: kiln for pottery or bricks (same reading, different kanji)