鶴 — “Crane / Stork” in Japanese

Master (高手)かく, つる

Radical ⿃ · radical 196 The building block this kanji is filed under

“Crane / Stork” in Japanese is 鶴, read kaku, tsuru (かく, つる). 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 鶴 (crane).

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What does 鶴 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	鶴
Meaning	Crane / Stork
Readings	かく, つる
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	鶴 (crane)

How to read 鶴

鶴 is read kaku (かく) or tsuru (つる) depending on the word.

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Kanji read the same way as 鶴

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

Updated: 2026-08-28