# 僧 — Buddhist monk

僧 means “Buddhist monk”. It is a JLPT N1 kanji written with 13 strokes. On'yomi: ソウ (sou). It has no common kun'yomi. You'll see it in words such as 僧 (sou, “monk; priest”).

- Meaning: Buddhist monk
- On'yomi: ソウ (sou)
- Kun'yomi: —
- Strokes: 13
- Level: JLPT N1 · set Belief & custom 3

## How to remember 僧

Sounds like 曽: both read ソウ.

Parts: 亻 person · 曽 formerly

## Words with 僧

| Word | Reading | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 僧 | そう (sou) | monk; priest |

## Don't confuse it with

[曽](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/formerly/) · [増](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/increase/) · [層](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/layer/) · [憎](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/detest/)

## More in the “Belief & custom 3” set

[悟](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/enlightenment/) · [霊](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/ghost/) · [魔](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/demon/) · [鬼](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/ogre/) · [奉](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/offer-reverently/) · [悼](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/grieve-for/) · [盆](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/tray/) · [僧](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/buddhist-monk/)

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From Moji Ninja (https://moji.ninja/), a free app for learning hiragana, katakana and the JLPT kanji from N5 to N1 with spaced repetition. Page: https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/buddhist-monk/. Last updated 2026-11-01.