犬
犬 — Dog
dog
On’yomiケン (ken)
Kun’yomiいぬ (inu)
Kun’yomiいぬ- (inu)
Stroke order (4 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 犬
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 犬 | いぬ inu | dog (Canis (lupus) familiaris); canine; squealer |
| 盲導犬 | もうどうけん moudouken | guide dog; seeing-eye dog |
| 愛犬 | あいけん aiken | pet dog; beloved dog; love of dogs |
| 子犬 | こいぬ koinu | puppy; small dog |
| 飼い犬 | かいいぬ kaiinu | pet dog |
| 野犬 | やけん yaken | stray dog; ownerless dog |
Study notes
犬 is a JLPT N4 kanji written with 4 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 1), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #1326 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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