酌 — “Bar-tending / Serving Sake / The Host / Draw (water)” in Japanese

Master (高手)しゃく, く

Radical ⾣ · radical 164 The building block this kanji is filed under

“Bar-tending / Serving Sake / The Host / Draw (water)” in Japanese is 酌, read shaku, ku (しゃく, く). 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 酌 (pouring sake).

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What does 酌 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	酌
Meaning	Bar-tending / Serving Sake / The Host / Draw (water)
Readings	しゃく, く
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	酌 (pouring sake)

How to read 酌

酌 is read shaku (しゃく) or ku (く) depending on the word.

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Kanji read the same way as 酌

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

Updated: 2026-08-28