苦 — “suffering / bitter” in Japanese

Grade 3く, くる, にが

Radical ⾋ · radical 140 The building block this kanji is filed under

“suffering / bitter” in Japanese is 苦, read ku, kuru, niga (く, くる, にが). It is a Grade 3 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 3 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 苦手 (not good at).

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What does 苦 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	苦
Meaning	suffering / bitter
Readings	く, くる, にが
Grade	Grade 3 (Medium)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	苦手 (not good at)

How to read 苦

苦 is read ku (く) or kuru (くる) or niga (にが) depending on the word.

Words with 苦

苦労くろう
苦手

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Updated: 2026-08-28