肩 — “Shoulder” in Japanese

Master (高手)けん, かた

Radical ⾁ · radical 130 The building block this kanji is filed under

“Shoulder” in Japanese is 肩, read ken, kata (けん, かた). 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 肩 (shoulder).

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What does 肩 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	肩
Meaning	Shoulder
Readings	けん, かた
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	肩 (shoulder)

How to read 肩

肩 is read ken (けん) or kata (かた) depending on the word.

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Kanji read the same way as 肩

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

Updated: 2026-08-28