急 — “urgent / hurry” in Japanese

Grade 3きゅう, いそ

Radical ⼼ · radical 61 The building block this kanji is filed under

“urgent / hurry” in Japanese is 急, read kyuu, iso (きゅう, いそ). It is a Grade 3 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 3 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 急行 (express train).

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What does 急 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	急
Meaning	urgent / hurry
Readings	きゅう, いそ
Grade	Grade 3 (Medium)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	急行 (express train)

How to read 急

急 is read kyuu (きゅう) or iso (いそ) depending on the word.

Words with 急

緊急きんきゅう
緊急会議きんきゅうかいぎ
急行

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Kanji read the same way as 急

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

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Updated: 2026-08-28