敗 — “lose / defeat” in Japanese

Grade 4はい, やぶ

Radical ⽁ · radical 66 The building block this kanji is filed under

“lose / defeat” in Japanese is 敗, read hai, yabu (はい, やぶ). 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 敗 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	敗
Meaning	lose / defeat
Readings	はい, やぶ
Grade	Grade 4 (Upper)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	失敗 (failure)

How to read 敗

敗 is read hai (はい) or yabu (やぶ) depending on the word.

Words with 敗

失敗

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Kanji read the same way as 敗

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

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Updated: 2026-08-28