劣
劣 — Inferiority
inferiority, be inferior to, be worse
On’yomiレツ (retsu)
Kun’yomiおとる (otoru)
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 劣
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 劣勢 | れっせい ressei | inferiority (e.g. numerical); inferior position; disadvantage |
| 卑劣 | ひれつ hiretsu | mean; contemptible; despicable |
| 劣る | おとる otoru | to be inferior to; to be less good at; to fall behind |
| 劣悪 | れつあく retsuaku | poor (quality, conditions, etc.); bad; inferior |
| 劣化 | れっか rekka | deterioration (in quality, performance, etc.); degradation; worsening |
| 劣等感 | れっとうかん rettoukan | inferiority complex; sense of inferiority |
Study notes
劣 is a JLPT N1 kanji written with 6 strokes. It is taught at secondary-school level in Japan. Ranked #1620 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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