呪 — “Spell / Curse / Charm / Malediction” in Japanese

Master (高手)じゅ, しゅ, しゅう, ず, まじな, のろ

Radical ⼝ · radical 30 The building block this kanji is filed under

“Spell / Curse / Charm / Malediction” in Japanese is 呪, read ju, shu, shuu (じゅ, しゅ, しゅう, ず, まじな, のろ). 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 呪文 (spell).

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What does 呪 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	呪
Meaning	Spell / Curse / Charm / Malediction
Readings	じゅ, しゅ, しゅう, ず, まじな, のろ
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	呪文 (spell)

How to read 呪

呪 is read ju (じゅ) or shu (しゅ) or shuu (しゅう) or zu (ず) or majina (まじな) or noro (のろ) depending on the word.

Words with 呪

呪文

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Kanji read the same way as 呪

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

Updated: 2026-08-28