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持
Kyōiku Kanji

持 — “to hold / to have” in Japanese

Grade 3じ, も
Radical ⼿ · radical 64 The building block this kanji is filed under

“to hold / to have” in Japanese is 持, read ji, mo (じ, も). It is a Grade 3 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 3 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 持つ (to hold).

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What does 持 mean?

Full details, readings & example
Kanji持
Meaningto hold / to have
Readingsじ, も
GradeGrade 3 (Medium)
CurriculumKyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example持つ (to hold)

How to read 持

持 is read ji (じ) or mo (も) depending on the word.

Words with 持

  • 持つto hold / to have
  • 維持
  • 力持ち
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Updated: 2026-08-28
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