補
補 — Supplement
supplement, supply, make good, offset, compensate, assistant
On’yomiホ (ho)
Kun’yomiおぎなう (oginau)
Stroke order (12 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 補
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 候補 | こうほ kouho | candidate; contender; prospect |
| 補助 | ほじょ hojo | assistance; support; help |
| 補償 | ほしょう hoshou | compensation; reparation |
| 立候補 | りっこうほ rikkouho | candidacy; standing as a candidate; bidding (to host an event, e.g. the Olympics) |
| 補正予算 | ほせいよさん hoseiyosan | revised budget; supplementary budget |
| 補佐 | ほさ hosa | aid; help; assistance |
Study notes
補 is a JLPT N2 kanji written with 12 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 6), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #332 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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