# 削 — shave; whittle

削 means “shave; whittle”. It is a JLPT N1 kanji written with 9 strokes. On'yomi: サク (saku). Kun'yomi: けず(る) (kezuru). You'll see it in words such as 削る (kezuru, “to shave; to sharpen”).

- Meaning: shave; whittle
- On'yomi: サク (saku)
- Kun'yomi: けず(る) (kezuru)
- Strokes: 9
- Level: JLPT N1 · set Hands at work 1

## How to remember 削

Parts: 肖 resemblance · 刂 sword

## Words with 削

| Word | Reading | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 削る | けずる (kezuru) | to shave; to sharpen |

## Don't confuse it with

[肖](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/resemblance/) · [消](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/extinguish/) · [脳](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/brain/) · [宵](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/early-evening/)

## More in the “Hands at work 1” set

[提](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/propose/) · [摘](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/pluck/) · [振](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/shake/) · [脱](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/take-off/) · [締](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/tighten/) · [執](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/cling-to/) · [削](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/shave/) · [載](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/load/)

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