# 敗 — defeat; fail

敗 means “defeat; fail”. It is a JLPT N3 kanji written with 11 strokes. On'yomi: ハイ (hai). Kun'yomi: やぶ(れる) (yabureru). You'll see it in words such as 敗れる (yabureru, “to be defeated; to be beaten”).

- Meaning: defeat; fail
- On'yomi: ハイ (hai)
- Kun'yomi: やぶ(れる) (yabureru)
- Strokes: 11
- Level: JLPT N3 · set Conflict & rivalry 2

## How to remember 敗

Shells (貝) smashed by a pointer (攵): a defeat.

Parts: 貝 shell; money · 攵 pointer

## Words with 敗

| Word | Reading | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 敗れる | やぶれる (yabureru) | to be defeated; to be beaten |

## Don't confuse it with

[買](https://moji.ninja/n5-kanji/buy/) · [員](https://moji.ninja/n4-kanji/member/) · [負](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/be-defeated/) · [則](https://moji.ninja/n2-kanji/rule/)

## More in the “Conflict & rivalry 2” set

[武](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/martial/) · [負](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/be-defeated/) · [守](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/guard/) · [敗](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/defeat/) · [兵](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/soldier/)

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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/n3-kanji/defeat/. Last updated 2026-11-01.