優 — superior / gentle

Grade 6ゆう, やさ, すぐ

Radical ⼈ · radical 9 The building block this kanji is filed under

優 (readings: ゆう, やさ, すぐ; Japanese kanji) means “superior / gentle”. It is a Grade 6 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 6 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 優秀 (excellent).

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What does 優 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	優
Meaning	superior / gentle
Readings	ゆう, やさ, すぐ
Grade	Grade 6 (Hardest)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	優秀 (excellent)

How to read 優

優 is read ゆう or やさ or すぐ depending on the word.

Words with 優

優勝ゆうしょうvô địch
優秀ưu tú
優雅thanh nhã

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Updated: 2026-08-09