Meaning
牲 means sacrifice or sacrificial animal — a living creature offered in a religious or ritual ceremony. It refers specifically to livestock presented as an offering to gods, ancestors, or spiritual forces. Giving something alive and valuable, rather than a mere object, is what gives this character its emotional weight.
Structurally, 牲 combines two meaningful parts. The left side is 牛 (うし), the character for "cow" or "ox," which serves as the radical and marks the semantic category: something related to cattle or large livestock. The right side is 生 (せい), meaning "life" or "birth." It originally provided the phonetic function (giving the "sei" sound) and also neatly reinforces the meaning: a living (生) cow (牛) prepared for ritual offering. In ancient East Asian cultures, offering a live, healthy animal — not a sick or weak one — was essential to an accepted sacrifice. Priests inspected the animal before the ceremony to confirm it met ritual standards.
牲 has 9 strokes and is a grade 8 kanji (secondary school level) in the Jōyō kanji list, added in the 2010 revision. Its placement there reflects its specialized, somewhat literary nature. Rated at JLPT N1, 牲 alone turns up mainly in classical or formal writing. As the second component of 犠牲 (ぎせい), though, it becomes everyday vocabulary. 犠牲 means "sacrifice" in the modern sense — giving up something valuable for a greater cause — and ranks among the most frequently tested N1 compounds.
Readings
On'yomi (音読み) — Chinese-derived readings
牲 has one on'yomi: セイ (sei), drawn from the classical Chinese pronunciation. In modern Japanese, セイ appears almost exclusively in 犠牲 (ぎせい) and its derivatives. You will find this reading in formal writing, historical texts, news reports on disasters or wars, and literary fiction. The reading carries real emotional weight — whenever 牲's セイ appears, the context almost always involves loss, high cost, or self-giving for a greater cause.
Core compounds using the セイ reading:
- 犠牲 (gisei) — sacrifice; victim; casualty; the price paid for something important
- 犠牲者 (giseisha) — victim; casualty; a person who suffers or dies as a result of something
- 犠牲的精神 (giseiteki seishin) — spirit of self-sacrifice; altruistic spirit; willingness to give up personal comfort for others
Kun'yomi (訓読み) — Native Japanese readings
牲 has no kun'yomi in modern Japanese. This is common for kanji of Chinese origin representing specialized cultural or religious concepts — the idea of a ritualistic sacrificial animal had no strong native Japanese word that this character absorbed over time. 牲 integrates entirely into the Sino-Japanese vocabulary system, relying solely on its on'yomi セイ.
Historically, large-scale animal sacrifice was less central to Shinto ritual than in ancient Chinese state ceremonies or certain Near Eastern traditions. This may partly explain why no native Japanese word attached itself firmly to this character. The concept of sacrifice is instead expressed through Sino-Japanese compounds, above all through 犠牲 (ぎせい). On an N1 exam or in study materials, the correct answer for the kun'yomi of 牲 is simply: there is none.
Common Words & Compounds
牲 appears in one primary compound, but that compound branches into many important expressions. Knowing these will help you use 犠牲 naturally across news, fiction, and everyday conversation.
- 犠牲 (gisei) — sacrifice; victim; price paid; casualty. The word to master first. It appears in news reports, historical writing, literature, speeches, and everyday conversation whenever the theme involves loss, self-giving, or paying a heavy cost.
- 犠牲者 (giseisha) — victim; casualty. Common in news: 地震の犠牲者 (earthquake victims), 事故の犠牲者 (accident victims), 戦争の犠牲者 (war victims).
- 犠牲的精神 (giseiteki seishin) — spirit of self-sacrifice; altruistic spirit. Used when praising someone who gives tirelessly without expecting anything in return.
- 犠牲心 (giseishin) — willingness to sacrifice; self-sacrificing spirit. A noun describing the personal quality of being ready to give things up for others.
- 犠牲的 (giseiteki) — self-sacrificing; characterized by sacrifice. Used as a na-adjective: 犠牲的な愛 (self-sacrificing love), 犠牲的な行為 (a self-sacrificing act).
- 犠牲になる (gisei ni naru) — to fall victim to; to be sacrificed. A common expression in both spoken and written Japanese: 事故の犠牲になる (to fall victim to an accident).
- 犠牲にする (gisei ni suru) — to sacrifice something; to give something up. Used when someone voluntarily surrenders something valuable: 睡眠を犠牲にして働く (to work by sacrificing sleep).
- 犠牲を払う (gisei wo harau) — to pay a price; to make a sacrifice. Often used in the sense of bearing a cost to achieve a goal.
- 犠牲を伴う (gisei wo tomonau) — to involve sacrifice; to come with a price. Expresses that achieving a goal requires giving something up.
- 三牲 (sansei) — the three sacrificial animals (ox, sheep, and pig) in classical East Asian ritual. A historical or literary term rarely seen in modern speech, but useful when reading classical texts or material on ancient customs.
Example Sentences
彼は家族のために犠牲を払った。
Kare wa kazoku no tame ni gisei wo haratta.
He made sacrifices for his family.
多くの人が戦争の犠牲者になった。
Ooku no hito ga sensou no giseisha ni natta.
Many people became victims of the war.
彼女は夢のためにすべてを犠牲にした。
Kanojo wa yume no tame ni subete wo gisei ni shita.
She sacrificed everything for her dream.
その事故で三人が犠牲になった。
Sono jiko de sannin ga gisei ni natta.
Three people fell victim to the accident.
環境を守るためには経済的な犠牲が必要かもしれない。
Kankyou wo mamoru tame ni wa keizaiteki na gisei ga hitsuyou kamo shirenai.
Economic sacrifices may be necessary to protect the environment.
古代の祭りでは動物が牲として捧げられた。
Kodai no matsuri dewa doubutsu ga sei to shite sasagerareta.
In ancient festivals, animals were offered as sacrifices.
彼の犠牲のおかげで、私たちは今ここにいる。
Kare no gisei no okage de, watashitachi wa ima koko ni iru.
Thanks to his sacrifice, we are here today.
犠牲を伴わない成功はない。
Gisei wo tomonawanai seikou wa nai.
There is no success without sacrifice.
彼女は子どもたちのために自分の時間を犠牲にしている。
Kanojo wa kodomotachi no tame ni jibun no jikan wo gisei ni shite iru.
She sacrifices her own time for her children.
彼は犠牲的精神を持って働いている。
Kare wa giseiteki seishin wo motte hataraite iru.
He works with a spirit of self-sacrifice.
Memory Tip
Picture an ancient ritual ceremony. The priest steps forward and selects the finest animal from the herd — a strong cow (牛, the left side of the kanji). This cow is full of life (生, the right side). A proper sacrifice had to be a living, thriving creature, not just any random offering. The logic is built directly into the character: 牲 = 牛 (cow) + 生 (life) = a living cow offered as a sacrifice. When you see this kanji, recall that image — something alive and precious given up for a greater purpose. That is what 犠牲 (ぎせい) means at its core.