慄 — “Fear” in Japanese

Master (高手)りつ, ふる, おそ, おのの

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

“Fear” in Japanese is 慄, read ritsu, furu, oso (りつ, ふる, おそ, おのの). 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 戦慄 (shudder / thrill of fear).

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What does 慄 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	慄
Meaning	Fear
Readings	りつ, ふる, おそ, おのの
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	戦慄 (shudder / thrill of fear)

How to read 慄

慄 is read ritsu (りつ) or furu (ふる) or oso (おそ) or onono (おのの) depending on the word.

Words with 慄

戦慄

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Kanji read the same way as 慄

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

Updated: 2026-08-28