色 — “color” in Japanese

Grade 2しょく, しき, いろ

Radical ⾊ · radical 139 The building block this kanji is filed under

“color” in Japanese is 色, read shoku, shiki, iro (しょく, しき, いろ). It is a Grade 2 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 2 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 色々 (various).

Try it now

What does 色 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	色
Meaning	color
Readings	しょく, しき, いろ
Grade	Grade 2 (Easy)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	色々 (various)

How to read 色

色 is read shoku (しょく) or shiki (しき) or iro (いろ) depending on the word.

Words with 色

黄色きいろ
青色あおいろ
赤色あかいろ
音色ねいろ
黄金色こがねいろ
金色
顔色
色々color
緑色
景色

Learn 色 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 色

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

Read this character in a real sentence

Updated: 2026-08-28