What is the Kanji for "Older brother"?

If you are wondering what is the Japanese Kanji for "Older brother", you've come to the right place!

The Japanese Kanji for "Older brother" is "兄".

This kanji has 4 readings:

Its kunyomi readings are "Ani" and "Nii".

Its onyomi readings are "Kei" and "Kyou".

kunyomi readings are based on the pronunciation of native Japanese words, and onyomi readings are based on the Chinese pronunciation of the character.

If you visually breakdown this kanji, you can see is made up of 2 parts:

The radical "儿" means "Legs" . And The kanji "口" means "Mouth" and can be read as "Ku", "Kuchi", and "Kou".

Now, let's make sure you understand this kanji the other way around too.

What does the kanji "兄" mean in japanese?

"兄" means "Older brother".

Japanese School Students learn this kanji in Second Grade, while foreigners may learn this kanji in preparation for the JLPT N4 exam.

Here are some words that use this kanji:

お兄さん: "Older brother". The Japanese noun 'お兄さん (おにいさん)' refers to an older male sibling. It is a polite way of addressing or referring to one's older brother. This term can be used to refer to one's own older brother or someone else's older brother. For example: My older brother is tall - (私の兄は背が高い). Can you please ask your older brother for help? - (あなたの兄さんにお手伝いを頼んでいただけますか?)

兄: "Older brother". 兄 (あに)' is a Japanese noun that refers to an older brother. It is used to address or refer to the male sibling who is older than the speaker. This word carries a sense of respect and hierarchy within the family structure. For example: My older brother is coming home - (私の兄がうちに帰ってくる). Older brother, can you help me? - (兄、手伝ってくれますか?)

兄さん: "Older brother". The noun '兄さん (にいさん)' means 'older brother'. This term is used to address or refer to one's older male sibling. It can also be used as a respectful way to address any older male, similar to how 'sir' is used in English. For example: My older brother is very kind - (私の兄さんはとてもやさしい). Excuse me, sir - (ごめんください、兄さん)

兄弟: "Siblings". The Japanese noun '兄弟 (きょうだい)' means 'siblings'. This word refers to brothers and/or sisters who share the same parents. It is a commonly used term in Japanese culture to describe family relationships. For example: My siblings and I - (私の兄弟と私). I have two siblings - (私には兄弟が二人いる).

父兄: "Parents" or "Parents and guardians". The Japanese noun '父兄 (ふけい)' refers to parents and guardians. It is commonly used in educational settings to refer collectively to the parents and guardians of students. For example: The school will hold a meeting for all parents and guardians - (学校は全ての父兄のための会議を開きます)

To make really sure you learn this Kanji, I've prepared an interactive lesson for you. You are going to learn the readings and meanings of this kanji.

But first, you need to know a little bit about Hiragana and Katakana.

Hiragana and katakana are japanese syllabaries, this means that each character represents a syllable.

This are the characters you need to know for this lesson:

The hiragana "け" is read as "ke". The hiragana "い" is read as "i". The hiragana "き" is read as "ki". The hiragana "う" is read as "u". The hiragana "あ" is read as "a". And The hiragana "に" is read as "ni".

Heres a quick tutorial on how to use it. You'll be asked three type of questions: meaning, reading, and writing.

For meanings questions all you have to do is type the english meaning. If there is more than one meaning, you have to include them all in your answer separating them by commas (,).

For Reading questions you have to type the reading in romaji (roman letters, our normal alphabet) and it'll be automatically converted to hiragana if necessary. If there is more than one reading, you have to include them all in your answer separating them by commas (,).

For Writing questions some options will appear and all you have to do is select the correct ones.