反 — “to oppose / to reverse” in Japanese

Grade 3はん, ほん, たん, そ

Radical ⼜ · radical 29 The building block this kanji is filed under

“to oppose / to reverse” in Japanese is 反, read han, hon, tan (はん, ほん, たん, そ). It is a Grade 3 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 3 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 反対 (opposition).

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What does 反 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	反
Meaning	to oppose / to reverse
Readings	はん, ほん, たん, そ
Grade	Grade 3 (Medium)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	反対 (opposition)

How to read 反

反 is read han (はん) or hon (ほん) or tan (たん) or so (そ) depending on the word.

Words with 反

反対はんたい
反射はんしゃ

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Kanji read the same way as 反

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

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Updated: 2026-08-28