Meaning
The kanji 級 means class, grade, level, and rank. It turns up wherever Japanese organizes things into tiers — school years, JLPT proficiency levels, martial arts belts, hotel ratings, sake quality grades. If a ranking system exists in Japan, 級 is probably involved.
級 has two components. On the left is 糸 (いと), the thread radical. On the right is 及 (きゅう), meaning to reach or to extend. In ancient practice, cords and threads were used to bind objects into ordered sequences — a physical system of classification. That origin maps directly onto the kanji's modern meaning of grades and ranks. 及 also supplies the phonetic reading: キュウ.
級 enters the Japanese school curriculum at grade 3. Students use it almost immediately when talking about their class year, classmates, or subject difficulty. The kanji has 9 strokes and belongs to the 糸 (thread) radical group. At N3, it appears regularly across academic writing, workplace settings, and everyday conversation.
Readings
On'yomi (音読み) — Chinese-derived readings
級 has one on'yomi: キュウ (kyū). This reading comes from ancient Chinese and is used in all compound words — no exceptions. Whenever you see 級 in a compound, read it as キュウ.
Common examples:
- 一級 (ikkyū) — first class or grade one; the top rank in some systems, the entry rank in others
- 上級 (jōkyū) — advanced level; used in education and skill rankings
- 高級 (kōkyū) — high class, luxury; describes premium restaurants, hotels, and goods
- 初級 (shokyū) — beginner level; the starting point in language learning or any structured skill
- 学級 (gakkyū) — school class, homeroom group; the basic unit of classroom organization in Japan
Kun'yomi (訓読み) — Native Japanese readings
級 has no kun'yomi in modern Japanese. This is typical of kanji that entered the language through Chinese — abstract concepts like "grade" or "rank" never picked up separate native pronunciations. For learners, that means one reading to memorize: キュウ.
Common Words & Compounds
級 appears across a wide range of vocabulary. Here are the most useful compounds, grouped by context:
School and Education:
- 学級 (gakkyū) — school class, homeroom class; the group of students taught together
- 同級生 (dōkyūsei) — classmate; someone in the same grade or year
- 進級 (shinkyū) — grade advancement; moving up to the next school year
- 留級 (ryūkyū) — grade retention; repeating the same school year
Skill Levels and Rankings:
- 初級 (shokyū) — beginner level
- 中級 (chūkyū) — intermediate level
- 上級 (jōkyū) — advanced level
- 最上級 (saijōkyū) — highest level; also the grammatical term for the superlative degree
- 一級 (ikkyū) — first class; context determines whether this is the top or entry grade
- 二級 (nikyū) — second class, grade two
Quality, Class, and Social Hierarchy:
- 高級 (kōkyū) — high class, luxury; premium goods, services, or venues
- 特級 (tokkyū) — special grade; the top tier in graded quality systems like sake or green tea
- 階級 (kaikyū) — social class, hierarchy; used in discussions of society, the military, or organizations
- 下級 (kakyū) — lower grade, lower class; a subordinate or junior rank
Example Sentences
私は今年、日本語能力試験のN3級を受けます。
Watashi wa kotoshi, Nihongo Nōryoku Shiken no N3-kyū wo ukemasu.
This year, I'm taking the N3 level of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test.
彼女は初級クラスから上級クラスへ進級した。
Kanojo wa shokyū kurasu kara jōkyū kurasu e shinkyū shita.
She moved up from the beginner class to the advanced class.
このホテルは高級で、サービスもとても良い。
Kono hoteru wa kōkyū de, sābisu mo totemo yoi.
This hotel is high-class, and the service is excellent too.
同級生と久しぶりに会って、昔の話をした。
Dōkyūsei to hisashiburi ni atte, mukashi no hanashi wo shita.
I ran into an old classmate after ages and we talked about the past.
学級会議で、クラスの問題について話し合った。
Gakkyū kaigi de, kurasu no mondai ni tsuite hanashiatta.
At the homeroom meeting, we talked through some issues in the class.
彼は空手の一級を持っている。
Kare wa karate no ikkyū wo motte iru.
He holds a first-grade rank in karate.
今年は成績が良かったので、無事に進級できた。
Kotoshi wa seiseki ga yokatta node, buji ni shinkyū dekita.
My grades were good this year, so I passed to the next grade without any trouble.
階級社会では、生まれた家によって人生が決まることが多い。
Kaikyū shakai de wa, umareta ie ni yotte jinsei ga kimaru koto ga ōi.
In a class-based society, the family you are born into often shapes your whole life.
彼女の料理の腕前は、プロ級だと思う。
Kanojo no ryōri no udemae wa, puro-kyū da to omou.
Her cooking is at a professional level, I think.
この資格試験は一級が最も難しい。
Kono shikaku shiken wa ikkyū ga mottomo muzukashii.
In this certification exam, the first grade is the hardest.
Memory Tip
Picture a long piece of thread (糸) pinned to a wall, with knots tied at regular intervals. Each knot marks a different level — the first is beginner (初級), the middle is intermediate (中級), the top is advanced (上級). The right side of the kanji, 及, means to reach. Put it together: reaching the next knot on the thread, climbing from one grade to the next. Every time you see 級, think of those knotted intervals — and remember that this kanji is about moving up.