牛
牛 — Cow
cow
On’yomiギュウ (gyuu)
Kun’yomiうし (ushi)
Stroke order (4 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 牛
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 牛 | うし ushi | cattle (Bos taurus); cow; bull |
| 牛肉 | ぎゅうにく gyuuniku | beef |
| 牛乳 | ぎゅうにゅう gyuunyuu | (cow's) milk |
| 牛歩 | ぎゅうほ gyuuho | snail's pace; slow progress |
| 和牛 | わぎゅう wagyuu | Wagyu (any of four breeds of Japanese cattle); Wagyu beef |
| 子牛 | こうし koushi | calf; small cow |
Study notes
牛 is a JLPT N4 kanji written with 4 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 2), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #1202 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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