上 — “above / up” in Japanese

Grade 1じょう, しょう, うえ, かみ, あ

Radical ⼀ · radical 1 The building block this kanji is filed under

“above / up” in Japanese is 上, read jou, shou, ue (じょう, しょう, うえ, かみ, あ). It is a Grade 1 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 1 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 上手 (skillful).

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What does 上 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	上
Meaning	above / up
Readings	じょう, しょう, うえ, かみ, あ
Grade	Grade 1 (Easiest)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	上手 (skillful)

How to read 上

上 is read jou (じょう) or shou (しょう) or ue (うえ) or kami (かみ) or a (あ) depending on the word.

Words with 上

北上ほくじょう
史上しじょう
以上いじょう
見上みあ
上陸じょうりく
上手じょうず
地上ちじょう
上空じょうくう
上下じょうげ
仕上しあ

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Kanji read the same way as 上

Same sound, different character — the classic trap. Compare them side by side:

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Updated: 2026-08-28