先 — “ahead / previous” in Japanese

Grade 1せん, さき

Radical ⼉ · radical 10 The building block this kanji is filed under

“ahead / previous” in Japanese is 先, read sen, saki (せん, さき). It is a Grade 1 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 1 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 先生 (teacher).

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What does 先 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	先
Meaning	ahead / previous
Readings	せん, さき
Grade	Grade 1 (Easiest)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	先生 (teacher)

How to read 先

先 is read sen (せん) or saki (さき) depending on the word.

Words with 先

先月せんげつ
先生せんせい
先祖せんぞ
指先ゆびさき
先輩
軒先
宛先

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Kanji read the same way as 先

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

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Updated: 2026-08-28