KanjiSchool KanjiSchool
KanjiGrade 2 › 少
Kyōiku Kanji

少 — few / little

Grade 2しょう, すこ, すく
Radical ⼩ · radical 42 The building block this kanji is filed under

少 (readings: しょう, すこ, すく; Japanese kanji) means “few / little”. It is a Grade 2 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 2 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 少し (a little).

Try it now

What does 少 mean?

Full details, readings & example
Kanji
Meaningfew / little
Readingsしょう, すこ, すく
GradeGrade 2 (Easy)
CurriculumKyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example少し (a little)

How to read 少

少 is read しょう or すこ or すく depending on the word.

Words with 少

  • げんしょうsuy giảm
  • 少しmột ít
Learn 少 in real sentences — free
Read stories and news built from only the kanji you already know. KanjiSchool’s path covers all 2,136 Jōyō kanji — 1,026 ready to learn now.
Start free — no credit card →

Read this character in a real sentence

Updated: 2026-08-09
Learn 少 the way Japanese kids do Start free