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KanjiGrade 4 › 臣
Kyōiku Kanji

臣 — retainer / minister

Grade 4しん, じん

臣 (readings: しん, じん; Japanese kanji) means “retainer / minister”. It is a Grade 4 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 4 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 大臣 (cabinet minister).

What does 臣 mean?

Kanji
Meaningretainer / minister
Readingsしん, じん
GradeGrade 4 (Upper)
CurriculumKyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school

How to read 臣

臣 is read しん or じん depending on the word.

Example words with 臣

Example大臣 (cabinet minister)
Practice writing 臣 — free
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Updated: 2026-07-14