ONYOMI: HON
本 is tree (木) plus one line. You can think of that extra line as the real, uh. . .hold on. . .. uh, the ground! The real estate the tree is growing in!
Or, you can think of the line as a page of a book (made from a tree).
Or you can just go home and take a bath. I don't care.
DESCRIPTION: JERK RADICAL: by itself, it means 'book', but most of the jukugo with the 本 kanji have to do with 'foundation.'
KUNYOMI:
Pronounced like this: 1: いっぽん、2: にほん、 3: さんぼん、 etc.
(COUNTER)
For example, 本人 means 'in person' (I saw Billy Idol in person at the Costco!).
(PRE)