留 — “detain / stay” in Japanese

Grade 5りゅう, る, と

Radical ⽥ · radical 102 The building block this kanji is filed under

“detain / stay” in Japanese is 留, read ryuu, ru, to (りゅう, る, と). It is a Grade 5 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 5 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 留学 (studying abroad).

Try it now

What does 留 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	留
Meaning	detain / stay
Readings	りゅう, る, と
Grade	Grade 5 (Hard)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	留学 (studying abroad)

How to read 留

留 is read ryuu (りゅう) or ru (る) or to (と) depending on the word.

Words with 留

留学

Learn 留 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 留

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

Updated: 2026-08-28