凄 — “Uncanny / Weird / Threatening / Horrible” in Japanese

Master (高手)せい, さい, さむ, すご, すさ

Radical ⼎ · radical 15 The building block this kanji is filed under

“Uncanny / Weird / Threatening / Horrible” in Japanese is 凄, read sei, sai, samu (せい, さい, さむ, すご, すさ). 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 凄惨 (ghastly).

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What does 凄 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	凄
Meaning	Uncanny / Weird / Threatening / Horrible
Readings	せい, さい, さむ, すご, すさ
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	凄惨 (ghastly)

How to read 凄

凄 is read sei (せい) or sai (さい) or samu (さむ) or sugo (すご) or susa (すさ) depending on the word.

Words with 凄

凄惨

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Kanji read the same way as 凄

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

Updated: 2026-08-28