墨 — “Black Ink / India Ink / Ink Stick / Mexico” in Japanese

Master (高手)ぼく, すみ

Radical ⿊ · radical 203 The building block this kanji is filed under

“Black Ink / India Ink / Ink Stick / Mexico” in Japanese is 墨, read boku, sumi (ぼく, すみ). 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 墨 (India ink).

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What does 墨 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	墨
Meaning	Black Ink / India Ink / Ink Stick / Mexico
Readings	ぼく, すみ
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	墨 (India ink)

How to read 墨

墨 is read boku (ぼく) or sumi (すみ) depending on the word.

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Kanji read the same way as 墨

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

Updated: 2026-08-28