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KanjiGrade 6 › 優
Kyōiku Kanji

優 — superior / gentle

Grade 6ゆう, やさ, すぐ

優 (readings: ゆう, やさ, すぐ; Japanese kanji) means “superior / gentle”. It is a Grade 6 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 6 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 優秀 (excellent).

What does 優 mean?

Kanji
Meaningsuperior / gentle
Readingsゆう, やさ, すぐ
GradeGrade 6 (Hardest)
CurriculumKyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school

How to read 優

優 is read ゆう or やさ or すぐ depending on the word.

Example words with 優

Example優秀 (excellent)
Practice writing 優 — free
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Updated: 2026-07-14