酒
酒 — Sake
sake, alcohol
On’yomiシュ (shu)
Kun’yomiさけ (sake)
Kun’yomiさか- (saka)
Stroke order (10 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 酒
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 酒 | さけ sake | alcohol; sake |
| 日本酒 | にほんしゅ nihonshu | sake (rice wine); saké |
| 酒類 | しゅるい shurui | alcoholic drinks; liquor |
| 飲酒 | いんしゅ inshu | drinking alcohol |
| 居酒屋 | いざかや izakaya | izakaya; tavern, bar, etc. that also serves various dishes and snacks |
| 酒造 | しゅぞう shuzou | brewing (sake); distilling (e.g. whisky) |
Study notes
酒 is a JLPT N3 kanji written with 10 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 3), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #1006 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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