獄 — Prison / Jail

Master (高手)ごく

Radical ⽝ · radical 94 The building block this kanji is filed under

獄 (readings: ごく; Japanese kanji) means “Prison / Jail”. It is a Jōyō kanji taught in Japanese secondary school (junior & senior high) — the 高手 · Master tier beyond the grade 1–6 Kyōiku set, and appears in words such as 地獄 (hell).

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What does 獄 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	獄
Meaning	Prison / Jail
Readings	ごく
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	地獄 (hell)

How to read 獄

獄 is read ごく depending on the word.

Words with 獄

地獄địa ngục

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Updated: 2026-07-22