筆 — “writing brush” in Japanese

Grade 3ひつ, ふで

Radical ⽵ · radical 118 The building block this kanji is filed under

“writing brush” in Japanese is 筆, read hitsu, fude (ひつ, ふで). It is a Grade 3 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 3 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 鉛筆 (pencil).

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What does 筆 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	筆
Meaning	writing brush
Readings	ひつ, ふで
Grade	Grade 3 (Medium)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	鉛筆 (pencil)

How to read 筆

筆 is read hitsu (ひつ) or fude (ふで) depending on the word.

Words with 筆

鉛筆
執筆

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Kanji read the same way as 筆

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

必ひつ necessary / certain

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Updated: 2026-08-28