Meaning
偽 covers the full spectrum of falsehood — fake goods, forged documents, lies, hypocrisy, imposture. The thread connecting all of them: something presenting itself as genuine while being anything but. In formal Japanese, this kanji appears wherever authenticity is under scrutiny, from legal filings and court proceedings to news reporting and literature.
偽 is a compound ideograph (会意文字), assembled from two elements: the left radical イ — a compressed form of 人, meaning "person" — and the right component 為, meaning "to do" or "to act." Together they picture a person whose actions are performance rather than reality, pretending to be what they are not. Recognizing these parts makes the kanji's meaning immediate.
偽 has 11 strokes and belongs to the 人 (person) radical group. It is a Jōyō kanji (常用漢字) assigned to high school study in Japan, placing it at N1 in the JLPT. It rarely surfaces in casual conversation, but appears constantly in news, legal writing, and formal literature. Its natural counterpart is 真 (shin) — truth, genuineness — the kanji that stands opposite 偽 in compounds like 真偽.
Readings
On'yomi (音読み) — Chinese-derived readings
偽's on'yomi is ギ (GI), inherited from classical Chinese. It dominates formal compound words (熟語) — the kind found in legal documents, academic writing, and newspaper headlines. When 偽 pairs with another kanji in a formal word, ギ is virtually always the correct reading.
- 偽造 (gizō) — forgery, counterfeiting; the act of fabricating or falsifying documents, money, or signatures
- 偽善 (gizen) — hypocrisy, false virtue; the act of appearing morally good while not being so
- 偽証 (gishō) — perjury, false testimony; giving deliberately false evidence in a court of law
- 偽装 (gisō) — disguise, camouflage; concealing one's true identity or intentions
- 偽名 (gimei) — false name, alias, pseudonym
- 真偽 (shingi) — truth or falsehood, authenticity; used when questioning whether something is real or fabricated
- 虚偽 (kyogi) — falsehood, misrepresentation; a more formal and literary term for untruth
Kun'yomi (訓読み) — Native Japanese readings
偽 has two kun'yomi readings: いつわ(る) (itsuwaru) and にせ (nise). Both appear in everyday speech, and both carry more emotional charge than the on'yomi — they're the readings you reach for in literature and personal storytelling.
いつわ(る) — itsuwaru: The verb form, meaning "to lie," "to deceive," or "to feign." Its noun form 偽り (itsuwari) is weightier than the everyday 嘘 (uso) — it suggests a deception that implies betrayal of trust rather than a casual white lie.
- 偽り (itsuwari) — a lie, falsehood, deception; the noun form
- 偽る (itsuwaru) — to lie, to deceive, to pretend; the verb form
にせ — nise: Functions as a prefix or standalone modifier — "fake," "imitation," "counterfeit." More colloquial than the ギ reading and the natural choice when talking about knock-off goods or someone impersonating another person.
- 偽物 (nisemono) — a fake, counterfeit, or imitation item
- 偽札 (nisesatsu) — counterfeit banknote, fake bill
- 偽者 (nisemono) — an impostor, a fraud (when referring to a person pretending to be someone else)
Common Words & Compounds
偽 threads through compound words for fraud, legal proceedings, identity deception, and moral hypocrisy. Here are the most useful, grouped by theme.
Legal and Criminal Context:
- 偽造 (gizō) — forgery, counterfeiting; one of the most common legal terms using this kanji
- 偽証 (gishō) — perjury, false testimony given under oath in a legal proceeding
- 偽計 (gikei) — deceptive scheme, fraudulent trick used to mislead others
- 虚偽 (kyogi) — falsehood, misrepresentation; used in formal and legal documents
Identity and Disguise:
- 偽名 (gimei) — false name, alias, pseudonym adopted to conceal one's identity
- 偽装 (gisō) — disguise, camouflage; making something appear to be what it is not
- 偽者 (nisemono) — an impostor, a person pretending to be someone else
Fake Objects and Products:
- 偽物 (nisemono) — a fake, imitation, or counterfeit item
- 偽札 (nisesatsu) — counterfeit banknote, forged currency
- 偽ブランド (nise burando) — counterfeit brand goods, knock-off luxury items
Moral Character:
- 偽善 (gizen) — hypocrisy, false virtue; projecting goodness one does not genuinely possess
- 偽善者 (gizensha) — a hypocrite, someone who pretends to be morally upright
- 偽り (itsuwari) — a lie, untruth, act of deception
Truth and Verification:
- 真偽 (shingi) — truth or falsehood; used when verifying whether something is genuine or fabricated (真 = true, 偽 = false)
Example Sentences
この偽物はとても本物に似ている。
Kono nisemono wa totemo honmono ni nite iru.
This fake looks very similar to the real thing.
彼は偽名を使ってホテルにチェックインした。
Kare wa gimei wo tsukatte hoteru ni chekkuin shita.
He checked into the hotel using a false name.
偽札を使うことは犯罪です。
Nisesatsu wo tsukau koto wa hanzai desu.
Using counterfeit banknotes is a crime.
その政治家は偽善者だと批判された。
Sono seijika wa gizensha da to hihan sareta.
That politician was criticized for being a hypocrite.
書類の偽造は重い罪だ。
Shorui no gizō wa omoi tsumi da.
Document forgery is a serious crime.
彼女は友人に病気だと偽って休んだ。
Kanojo wa yūjin ni byōki da to itsuwatte yasunda.
She lied to her friend, pretending to be sick, and took the day off.
この情報の真偽を確かめる必要がある。
Kono jōhō no shingi wo tashikameru hitsuyō ga aru.
We need to verify the truth or falsehood of this information.
偽ブランドの商品を販売することは違法だ。
Nise burando no shōhin wo hanbai suru koto wa ihō da.
Selling counterfeit brand goods is illegal.
彼の偽善的な態度にみんなが気づいた。
Kare no gizen-teki na taido ni minna ga kidzuita.
Everyone noticed his hypocritical attitude.
虚偽の申告をすると法律で罰せられる。
Kyogi no shinkoku wo suru to hōritsu de basserareru.
Making false declarations can be punished under the law.
Memory Tip
Break 偽 into its two parts: the person radical イ (人) on the left, and 為 ("to do," "to act") on the right. Picture a stage actor — someone whose every gesture is rehearsed and every word scripted, nothing genuine. That image of a person whose actions are pure performance is exactly what 偽 means. Find the actor's mask in this kanji, and the meaning stays with you.