殺 — “kill” in Japanese

Grade 4さつ, さい, ころ

Radical ⽎ · radical 79 The building block this kanji is filed under

“kill” in Japanese is 殺, read satsu, sai, koro (さつ, さい, ころ). It is a Grade 4 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 4 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 殺人 (murder).

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What does 殺 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	殺
Meaning	kill
Readings	さつ, さい, ころ
Grade	Grade 4 (Upper)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	殺人 (murder)

How to read 殺

殺 is read satsu (さつ) or sai (さい) or koro (ころ) depending on the word.

Words with 殺

殺人
絞殺
斬殺

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Kanji read the same way as 殺

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

Updated: 2026-08-28