零 — “Zero / Spill / Overflow / Nothing” in Japanese

Master (高手)れい, ぜろ, こぼ

Radical ⾬ · radical 173 The building block this kanji is filed under

“Zero / Spill / Overflow / Nothing” in Japanese is 零, read rei, zero, kobo (れい, ぜろ, こぼ). 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 零点 (zero point).

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What does 零 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	零
Meaning	Zero / Spill / Overflow / Nothing
Readings	れい, ぜろ, こぼ
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	零点 (zero point)

How to read 零

零 is read rei (れい) or zero (ぜろ) or kobo (こぼ) depending on the word.

Words with 零

零点

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Kanji read the same way as 零

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

Updated: 2026-08-28