兼 — “Concurrently / And / Beforehand / In Advance” in Japanese

Master (高手)けん, か, -か

Radical ⼋ · radical 12 The building block this kanji is filed under

“Concurrently / And / Beforehand / In Advance” in Japanese is 兼, read ken, ka (けん, か, -か). 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 兼業 (side business).

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What does 兼 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	兼
Meaning	Concurrently / And / Beforehand / In Advance
Readings	けん, か, -か
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	兼業 (side business)

How to read 兼

兼 is read ken (けん) or ka (か) or ka (-か) depending on the word.

Words with 兼

兼業

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Kanji read the same way as 兼

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

Updated: 2026-08-28