済 — “to finish / to save” in Japanese

Grade 6さい, す

Radical ⽔ · radical 85 The building block this kanji is filed under

“to finish / to save” in Japanese is 済, read sai, su (さい, す). It is a Grade 6 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 6 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 経済 (economy).

Try it now

What does 済 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	済
Meaning	to finish / to save
Readings	さい, す
Grade	Grade 6 (Hardest)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	経済 (economy)

How to read 済

済 is read sai (さい) or su (す) depending on the word.

Words with 済

経済けいざい

Learn 済 in real sentences — free

Read stories and news built from only the kanji you already know. KanjiSchool’s path covers all 2,136 Jōyō kanji — 1,018 ready to learn now.

Start free — no credit card →

Kanji read the same way as 済

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

Read this character in a real sentence

Updated: 2026-08-28