泣
泣 — Cry
cry, weep, moan
On’yomiキュウ (kyuu)
Kun’yomiなく (naku)
Stroke order (8 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 泣
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 悔し泣き | くやしなき kuyashinaki | crying from vexation; tears of regret |
| 泣き | なき naki | weeping; lamenting |
| 泣き声 | なきごえ nakigoe | cry (e.g. of a baby); sob; whine |
| 泣く | なく naku | to cry; to shed tears; to weep |
| 泣き顔 | なきがお nakigao | crying face; face of a person who is crying |
| 泣かす | なかす nakasu | to make someone cry; to move someone to tears; to grieve |
Study notes
泣 is a JLPT N1 kanji written with 8 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 4), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #1380 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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