雄 — “Masculine / Male / Hero / Leader” in Japanese

Master (高手)ゆう, お-, おす, おん

Radical ⾫ · radical 172 The building block this kanji is filed under

“Masculine / Male / Hero / Leader” in Japanese is 雄, read yuu, o, osu (ゆう, お-, おす, おん). 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 英雄 (hero).

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What does 雄 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	雄
Meaning	Masculine / Male / Hero / Leader
Readings	ゆう, お-, おす, おん
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	英雄 (hero)

How to read 雄

雄 is read yuu (ゆう) or o (お-) or osu (おす) or on (おん) depending on the word.

Words with 雄

英雄

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Kanji read the same way as 雄

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

Updated: 2026-08-28