顔
顔 — Face
face, expression
On’yomiガン (gan)
Kun’yomiかお (kao)
Stroke order (18 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 顔
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 顔 | かお kao | face; visage; looks |
| 知らん顔 | しらんかお shirankao | feigned ignorance; pretending not to know; pretending not to recognize (someone) |
| 笑顔 | えがお egao | smiling face; smile |
| 似顔 | にがお nigao | portrait; likeness |
| 顔ぶれ | かおぶれ kaobure | personnel; members; lineup (of a team) |
| 素顔 | すがお sugao | face with no make-up; unpainted face; true face (of a country, celebrity, etc.) |
Study notes
顔 is a JLPT N3 kanji written with 18 strokes. It is taught in Japanese elementary school (grade 2), so native children learn it early — a good sign it appears everywhere. Ranked #676 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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