読 — Kanji Reference

読 (read): 14 strokes, JLPT N5. On: ドク、トク、トウ. Kun: よ-む.

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読

Property Value
Meaning read
Strokes 14
JLPT Level N5
On-reading (音読み) ドク、トク、トウ
Kun-reading (訓読み) よ-む
Radical 言 (ごんべん - gonben) U+8A00

Stroke Order

The kanji 読 is written in 14 strokes. Follow the standard rule of top-to-bottom and left-to-right.

  1. Left side (言): Start with the horizontal top stroke, followed by three horizontal lines, then the mouth (口) shape.
  2. Right side (売): Write the top dot/horizontal, the middle "士" shape, and finally the bottom "儿" shape.

Stroke order: 1 (dot) → 2 (horiz) → 3 (horiz) → 4 (horiz) → 5 (vert) → 6 (horiz) → 7 (horiz) → 8 (dot) → 9 (horiz) → 10 (vert) → 11 (horiz) → 12 (horiz) → 13 (slant) → 14 (hook).

Radical Analysis

The radical is 言 (ごんべん - gonben), which means "speech" or "words." Since reading involves processing words, this radical provides the semantic context. The right side, 売 (う-る - to sell), acts as a phonetic component (in older readings) and suggests the idea of "offering words" or "deciphering what is sold/presented."

Mnemonic

Imagine a speech bubble (言) containing a price tag (売). To understand what the price tag says, you must read it carefully. Every time you see this kanji, imagine you are "speaking the words you see for sale."

On-readings (音読み) with Examples

ドク (Doku)

Word Reading Romaji English
読書 読どく書しょ dokusho reading books
読者 読どく者しゃ dokusha reader
音読 音おん読どく ondoku reading aloud

トク (Toku)

Word Reading Romaji English
読経 読どく経きょう dokkyou chanting sutras
句読点 句く読とう点てん kutouten punctuation marks

(Note: トク is rare and usually appears in specific Buddhist or classical contexts.)

Kun-readings (訓読み) with Examples

よ-む (Yo-mu)

Word Reading Romaji English
本を読む 本ほんを読よむ hon o yomu to read a book
読み方 読よみ方かた yomikata way of reading

JLPT N5 Words Using 読

Word Reading Romaji English JLPT
読む 読よむ yomu to read N5
読書 読どく書しょ dokusho reading books N4
読み物 読よみ物もの yomimono reading material N3

Example Sentences

Japanese Reading Romaji English
毎日本を読みます。 毎まい日にち本ほんを読よみます。 Mainichi hon o yomimasu. I read books every day.
この漢字の読み方を教えてください。 この漢かん字じの読よみ方かたを教おしえてください。 Kono kanji no yomikata o oshiete kudasai. Please teach me how to read this kanji.
彼は読書が好きです。 彼かれは読どく書しょが好すきです。 Kare wa dokusho ga suki desu. He likes reading.
新聞を読みましたか。 新しん聞ぶんを読よみましたか。 Shinbun o yomimashita ka? Did you read the newspaper?
読者はこの物語に感動した。 読どく者しゃはこの物もの語がたりに感かん動どうした。 Dokusha wa kono monogatari ni kandou shita. The reader was moved by this story.

Common Confusion Pairs

Kanji Reading Meaning How to distinguish
売 う-る (uru) to sell 売 lacks the "speech" (言) radical on the left.
続 つづ-く (tsuzuku) to continue 続 uses the "thread" (糸) radical; it means to continue, not to read.

Usage Frequency Note

読 is a core kanji in the Japanese language. It is used daily in all forms of communication, from casual speech ("本を読んだ" - read a book) to formal writing ("読者層" - readership). It is one of the first 100 kanji learned by students in Japan and is essential for basic literacy.