玄 — “Mysterious / Occultness / Black / Deep” in Japanese

Master (高手)げん, くろ

Radical ⽞ · radical 95 The building block this kanji is filed under

“Mysterious / Occultness / Black / Deep” in Japanese is 玄, read gen, kuro (げん, くろ). 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 玄関 (entrance).

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What does 玄 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	玄
Meaning	Mysterious / Occultness / Black / Deep
Readings	げん, くろ
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	玄関 (entrance)

How to read 玄

玄 is read gen (げん) or kuro (くろ) depending on the word.

Words with 玄

玄関

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Kanji read the same way as 玄

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

Updated: 2026-08-28