有
有 — Possess
possess, have, exist, happen, occur, approx
On’yomiユウ (yuu)
On’yomiウ (u)
Kun’yomiある (aru)
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 有
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 有効 | ゆうこう yuukou | valid; effective; yuko (judo) |
| 有力 | ゆうりょく yuuryoku | influential; prominent; leading |
| 有 | ゆう yuu | existence; possession; having |
| 有権者 | ゆうけんしゃ yuukensha | (eligible) voter; elector; constituent |
| 有名 | ゆうめい yuumei | famous; well-known |
| 保有 | ほゆう hoyuu | possession; retention; maintenance |
Study notes
有 is a JLPT N4 kanji written with 6 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 3), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #282 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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