光
光 — Ray
ray, light
On’yomiコウ (kou)
Kun’yomiひかる (hikaru)
Kun’yomiひかり (hikari)
Stroke order (6 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 光
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 光 | ひかり hikari | light; illumination; ray |
| 観光 | かんこう kankou | sightseeing; tourism |
| 光景 | こうけい koukei | scene; spectacle; sight |
| 日光 | にっこう nikkou | sunlight; sunshine; sunbeams |
| 脚光 | きゃっこう kyakkou | footlight; limelight |
| 栄光 | えいこう eikou | glory |
Study notes
光 is a JLPT N3 kanji written with 6 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 2), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #527 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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