# 淡 — faint; light-coloured

淡 means “faint; light-coloured”. It is a JLPT N1 kanji written with 11 strokes. On'yomi: タン (tan). Kun'yomi: あわ(い) (awai). You'll see it in words such as 淡々 (tantan, “uninterested; unconcerned”).

- Meaning: faint; light-coloured
- On'yomi: タン (tan)
- Kun'yomi: あわ(い) (awai)
- Strokes: 11
- Level: JLPT N1 · set Qualities 4

## How to remember 淡

Parts: 氵 water · 炎 flame

## Words with 淡

| Word | Reading | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 淡々 | たんたん (tantan) | uninterested; unconcerned |
| 淡い | あわい (awai) | light; faint |

## Don't confuse it with

[滅](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/perish/)

## More in the “Qualities 4” set

[淡](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/faint/) · [准](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/quasi/) · [虚](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/void/) · [尚](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/esteem/) · [穏](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/calm/) · [顕](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/conspicuous/) · [巧](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/skilful/) · [粛](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/hushed/) · [愚](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/foolish/)

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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/faint/. Last updated 2026-11-01.