蛍 — “Lightning-bug / Firefly” in Japanese

Master (高手)けい, ほたる

Radical ⾍ · radical 142 The building block this kanji is filed under

“Lightning-bug / Firefly” in Japanese is 蛍, read kei, hotaru (けい, ほたる). 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 蛍 (firefly).

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What does 蛍 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	蛍
Meaning	Lightning-bug / Firefly
Readings	けい, ほたる
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	蛍 (firefly)

How to read 蛍

蛍 is read kei (けい) or hotaru (ほたる) depending on the word.

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Kanji read the same way as 蛍

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

Updated: 2026-08-28