賢 — Intelligent / Wise / Wisdom / Cleverness

Master (高手)けん, かしこ

Radical ⾙ · radical 154 The building block this kanji is filed under

賢 (readings: けん, かしこ; Japanese kanji) means “Intelligent / Wise / Wisdom / Cleverness”. 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 賢明 (wise).

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What does 賢 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	賢
Meaning	Intelligent / Wise / Wisdom / Cleverness
Readings	けん, かしこ
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	賢明 (wise)

How to read 賢

賢 is read けん or かしこ depending on the word.

Words with 賢

賢明sáng suốt

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Updated: 2026-07-22