KanjiSchool KanjiSchool
KanjiGrade 5 › 能
Kyōiku Kanji

能 — ability / talent

Grade 5のう
Radical ⾁ · radical 130 The building block this kanji is filed under

能 (readings: のう; Japanese kanji) means “ability / talent”. It is a Grade 5 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 5 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 可能 (possibility).

Try it now

What does 能 mean?

Full details, readings & example
Kanji
Meaningability / talent
Readingsのう
GradeGrade 5 (Hard)
CurriculumKyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example可能 (possibility)

How to read 能

能 is read のう depending on the word.

Words with 能

  • かのうせいkhả năng / tiềm năng
  • có thể
Learn 能 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 能 the way Japanese kids do Start free