乾 — “Drought / Dry / Dessicate / Drink Up” in Japanese

Master (高手)かん, けん, かわ, ほ, ひ, いぬい

Radical ⼄ · radical 5 The building block this kanji is filed under

“Drought / Dry / Dessicate / Drink Up” in Japanese is 乾, read kan, ken, kawa (かん, けん, かわ, ほ, ひ, いぬい). It is a Jōyō kanji taught in Japanese secondary school (junior & senior high) — the 高手 · Master tier beyond the grade 1–6 Kyōiku set, and appears in words such as 乾燥 (dryness).

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What does 乾 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	乾
Meaning	Drought / Dry / Dessicate / Drink Up
Readings	かん, けん, かわ, ほ, ひ, いぬい
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	乾燥 (dryness)

How to read 乾

乾 is read kan (かん) or ken (けん) or kawa (かわ) or ho (ほ) or hi (ひ) or inui (いぬい) depending on the word.

Words with 乾

乾杯
乾燥

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Kanji read the same way as 乾

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

Updated: 2026-08-28