老 — “old / aged” in Japanese

Grade 4ろう, お, ふ

Radical ⽼ · radical 125 The building block this kanji is filed under

“old / aged” in Japanese is 老, read rou, o, fu (ろう, お, ふ). It is a Grade 4 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 4 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 老人 (elderly person).

Try it now

What does 老 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	老
Meaning	old / aged
Readings	ろう, お, ふ
Grade	Grade 4 (Upper)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	老人 (elderly person)

How to read 老

老 is read rou (ろう) or o (お) or fu (ふ) depending on the word.

Words with 老

老人
老翁
老婆

Learn 老 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 老

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

Read this character in a real sentence

👵 Keiro no Hi: Japan's Respect for the Aged Day, and a country with almost 100,000 centenarians Grade 6

Updated: 2026-08-28