刻 — “to carve / moment of time” in Japanese

Grade 6こく, きざ

Radical ⼑ · radical 18 The building block this kanji is filed under

“to carve / moment of time” in Japanese is 刻, read koku, kiza (こく, きざ). It is a Grade 6 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 6 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 時刻 (time).

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What does 刻 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	刻
Meaning	to carve / moment of time
Readings	こく, きざ
Grade	Grade 6 (Hardest)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	時刻 (time)

How to read 刻

刻 is read koku (こく) or kiza (きざ) depending on the word.

Words with 刻

時刻じこく
遅刻
彫刻

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Kanji read the same way as 刻

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

Read this character in a real sentence

🌸 アサガオの開花時刻と気温の関係 Grade 6

Updated: 2026-08-28