僧 — Buddhist Priest / Monk

Master (高手)そう

Radical ⼈ · radical 9 The building block this kanji is filed under

僧 (readings: そう; Japanese kanji) means “Buddhist Priest / Monk”. 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 僧侶 (monk).

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What does 僧 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	僧
Meaning	Buddhist Priest / Monk
Readings	そう
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	僧侶 (monk)

How to read 僧

僧 is read そう depending on the word.

Words with 僧

僧侶nhà sư
尼僧ni cô

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Updated: 2026-07-22