Sometimes the kanji says it all. Though in most cases it is largely impossible to foretell a character's meaning from its shape — 田 (window?), 今 (bus stop?), 無 (cockroach in motion?) — the semantics of this one cuts right through you: 中.

Read naka, chū or , 中 captures the complex meaning of being within, between or in the middle of something. In its most straightforward sense, it translates simply as "in": 家の中 (ie no naka, in the house), カバンの中 (kaban no naka¸ in the bag) or, more metaphysically, 心の中 (kokoro no naka, in the heart). Even when outside, you can still be "in" something, for instance, 雨の中 (ame no naka, in the rain).

The "middle" meaning of 中 becomes apparent in terms like 中指 (nakayubi, the middle finger or toe) and 中庭 (nakaniwa, a courtyard between buildings). One of my favorite "middle" expressions is 中古 (chūko), which means "second-hand" and literally translates as "middle-old."