旧 — “old / former” in Japanese

Grade 5きゅう, ふる

Radical ⽇ · radical 72 The building block this kanji is filed under

“old / former” in Japanese is 旧, read kyuu, furu (きゅう, ふる). It is a Grade 5 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 5 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 旧友 (old friend).

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What does 旧 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	旧
Meaning	old / former
Readings	きゅう, ふる
Grade	Grade 5 (Hard)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	旧友 (old friend)

How to read 旧

旧 is read kyuu (きゅう) or furu (ふる) depending on the word.

Words with 旧

復旧ふっきゅう
旧友

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Kanji read the same way as 旧

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

Updated: 2026-08-28