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Number One

On’yomiいち・いつ
Kun’yomiひとつ
12 strokes Radical scholar
書き順 · Stroke order

How to write 壹

Stroke order is not decoration — it determines how the character looks handwritten and how dictionaries index it.

12 strokes
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分解 · What it is made of

The parts of 壹

Almost every kanji is built from a small set of reusable parts. Learn the parts once and you stop memorising thousands of unrelated shapes.

radical gentleman =
Number One
Why it sounds the way it does. The part 吉V1 is the phonetic component — it carries the sound rather than the meaning. That is why 壹 is read いち. Roughly two-thirds of all kanji work this way, which makes unfamiliar readings guessable once you spot the pattern.
部首 · Radical

The radical of 壹

Radical 33 of 214
Scholar

The radical is the part a paper dictionary files a kanji under, and it usually hints at meaning. 壹 is filed under (scholar) — radical number 33 of the 214 in the Kangxi system.

Other kanji built on 士

練習 · Practice

Drill 壹 right now

Three quick games built from this character's real data. Your streak is kept in this browser.

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Number One いち・いつ ひとつ
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熟語 · In real words

Words that use 壹

Kanji are almost never met alone. These are the most common words built from this character, ordered by how often they actually appear in Japanese.

壹岐 イキ orgasm, coming
名乗り · Name readings

How 壹 is read in names

Japanese names use readings that appear nowhere else in the language. These are 壹's — the reason personal and place names are so hard to read even for native speakers.

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質問 · Questions

About the kanji 壹

What does the kanji 壹 mean?

壹 means Number One.

How do you read the kanji 壹?

壹 is read on'yomi (Chinese-derived) いち、いつ; kun'yomi (native Japanese) ひとつ.

How many strokes does 壹 have?

壹 is written with 12 strokes. The animated diagram on this page shows the correct order.

What is the radical of 壹?

The radical of 壹 is 士 (scholar), radical number 33 of the 214 Kangxi radicals. The radical is the component a dictionary files the character under, and it usually points at the character's meaning.

Why is 壹 read いち?

壹 contains 吉V1 as its phonetic component — the part that carries the sound rather than the meaning, which is why 壹 is read いち. Roughly two-thirds of all kanji are built this way, so spotting the phonetic component often lets you guess the reading of a character you have never seen.

What words use the kanji 壹?

Common words written with 壹 include 壹岐 (イキ, orgasm, coming).

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