1A crab — the decapod crustacean that walks sideways, found in seas and rivers. In Japan, crab is a beloved winter delicacy, with edible species like タラバガニ (king crab), ズワイガニ (snow crab), and 毛ガニ (horsehair crab). Since the kanji 蟹 is non-jōyō, written form depends on context: katakana カニ for biology and general writing, hiragana かに for dish names and casual prose, kanji 蟹 in literary contexts and restaurant names.
冬になると、家族でカニを食べに北海道へ行く。
Every winter, my family goes to Hokkaido to eat crab.
浜辺の岩の間に小さなカニがいた。
There was a little crab between the rocks on the beach.
今夜の夕飯はかに鍋にしよう。
Let's have crab hot pot for dinner tonight.
カニはみそが一番おいしい。
The best part of a crab is the innards (kanimiso).
カニは横にしか歩けないと思われがちだが、実は前にも歩ける種類もいる。
Crabs are often thought to only walk sideways, but some species can actually walk forward too.