紅
紅 — Crimson
crimson, deep red
On’yomiコウ (kou)
On’yomiク (ku)
Kun’yomiべに (beni)
Kun’yomiくれない (kurenai)
Kun’yomiあかい (akai)
Stroke order (9 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 紅
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 紅 | くれない kurenai | deep red; crimson; rouge |
| 紅白 | こうはく kouhaku | red and white; colours for festive or auspicious occasions (colors); two teams |
| 紅茶 | こうちゃ koucha | black tea |
| 口紅 | くちべに kuchibeni | lipstick |
| 紅葉 | こうよう kouyou | leaves turning red (in autumn); red leaves; autumn colours |
| 紅潮 | こうちょう kouchou | flush; blush |
Study notes
紅 is a JLPT N2 kanji written with 9 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 6), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #1299 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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