失 — “lose / fail” in Japanese

Grade 4しつ, うしな

Radical ⼤ · radical 37 The building block this kanji is filed under

“lose / fail” in Japanese is 失, read shitsu, ushina (しつ, うしな). It is a Grade 4 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 4 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 失敗 (failure).

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What does 失 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	失
Meaning	lose / fail
Readings	しつ, うしな
Grade	Grade 4 (Upper)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	失敗 (failure)

How to read 失

失 is read shitsu (しつ) or ushina (うしな) depending on the word.

Words with 失

失敗
喪失
失踪

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Kanji read the same way as 失

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Updated: 2026-08-28