# 柔 — pliant; gentle

柔 means “pliant; gentle”. It is a JLPT N2 kanji written with 9 strokes. On'yomi: ジュウ (juu), ニュウ (nyuu). Kun'yomi: やわ(らか) (yawaraka). You'll see it in words such as 柔らかい (yawarakai, “soft; tender”).

- Meaning: pliant; gentle
- On'yomi: ジュウ (juu), ニュウ (nyuu)
- Kun'yomi: やわ(らか) (yawaraka)
- Strokes: 9
- Level: JLPT N2 · set Qualities 4

## How to remember 柔

Parts: 矛 halberd · 木 tree

## Words with 柔

| Word | Reading | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 柔らかい | やわらかい (yawarakai) | soft; tender |
| 柔らか | やわらか (yawaraka) | soft; tender |

## More in the “Qualities 4” set

[仮](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/temporary/) · [純](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/genuine/) · [荒](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/rough/) · [硬](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/hard/) · [賢](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/wise/) · [柔](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/pliant/) · [濃](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/dense/)

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