別
別 — Separate
separate, branch off, diverge, fork, another, extra
On’yomiベツ (betsu)
Kun’yomiわかれる (wakareru)
Kun’yomiわける (wakeru)
Stroke order (7 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 別
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 告別 | こくべつ kokubetsu | farewell; leave-taking |
| 特別 | とくべつ tokubetsu | special; particular; extraordinary |
| 個別 | こべつ kobetsu | individual; separate; personal |
| 差別 | さべつ sabetsu | distinction; differentiation; discrimination |
| 別に | べつに betsuni | (not) particularly; (not) especially; (not) specially |
| 別れ | わかれ wakare | parting (of people); separation; farewell |
Study notes
別 is a JLPT N4 kanji written with 7 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 4), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #214 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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