上
上 — Above
above, up
On’yomiジョウ (jou)
On’yomiショウ (shou)
On’yomiシャン (shan)
Kun’yomiうえ (ue)
Kun’yomi-うえ (ue)
Kun’yomiうわ- (uwa)
Kun’yomiかみ (kami)
Kun’yomiあげる (ageru)
Stroke order (3 strokes)
Watch the strokes draw themselves in the correct order — numbers mark where each stroke starts. Diagram from KanjiVG (CC BY-SA).
Common words using 上
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 史上 | しじょう shijou | in history; ever; historical |
| 事実上 | じじつじょう jijitsujou | as a matter of fact; actually; effectively |
| 上がったり | あがったり agattari | doomed (business, trade, etc.); in a bad state; poor |
| 上昇 | じょうしょう joushou | rising; ascending; climbing |
| 向上 | こうじょう koujou | elevation; rise; improvement |
| 上位 | じょうい joui | superior (in rank); top; ranking |
Study notes
上 is a JLPT N5 kanji written with 3 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 1), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #35 of the 2,500 most frequent kanji in newspapers. On’yomi (音読み) are Chinese-derived readings mostly used in compound words; kun’yomi (訓読み) are native Japanese readings, with any highlighted part written in hiragana after the kanji (okurigana).
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