# 雇 — employ; hire

雇 means “employ; hire”. It is a JLPT N2 kanji written with 12 strokes. On'yomi: コ (ko). Kun'yomi: やと(う) (yatou). You'll see it in words such as 雇う (yatou, “to employ; to hire”).

- Meaning: employ; hire
- On'yomi: コ (ko)
- Kun'yomi: やと(う) (yatou)
- Strokes: 12
- Level: JLPT N2 · set A bit of everything 1

## How to remember 雇

Sounds like 戸: both read コ.

Parts: 戸 door · 隹 bird

## Words with 雇

| Word | Reading | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 雇う | やとう (yatou) | to employ; to hire |
| 雇い | やとい (yatoi) | employee; employment |

## Don't confuse it with

[扉](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/hinged-door/) · [涙](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/tears/) · [扇](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/folding-fan/)

## More in the “A bit of everything 1” set

[募](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/recruit/) · [績](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/achievement/) · [勤](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/go-to-work/) · [雇](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/employ/) · [御](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/honourable/) · [漁](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/fishing/)

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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/n2-kanji/employ/. Last updated 2026-11-01.