舌
舌 — Tongue
tongue, reed, clapper
On’yomiゼツ (zetsu)
Kun’yomiした (shita)
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 舌
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 舌 | した shita | tongue; tongue-like object; clapper (of a bell) |
| 猫舌 | ねこじた nekojita | dislike of very hot food or drink; inability to take hot food; cat tongue |
| 弁舌 | べんぜつ benzetsu | speech; eloquence; manner of speaking |
| 舌戦 | ぜっせん zessen | war of words |
| 毒舌 | どくぜつ dokuzetsu | wicked tongue; sharp tongue; abusive language |
| 冗舌 | じょうぜつ jouzetsu | talkativeness; garrulity; loquacity |
Study notes
舌 is a JLPT N1 kanji written with 6 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 6), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #1830 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).
🔊 Tap the big kanji, any reading or any example word to hear it.