# 防 — defend; prevent

防 means “defend; prevent”. It is a JLPT N3 kanji written with 7 strokes. On'yomi: ボウ (bou). Kun'yomi: ふせ(ぐ) (fusegu). You'll see it in words such as 防ぐ (fusegu, “to defend against; to protect against”).

- Meaning: defend; prevent
- On'yomi: ボウ (bou)
- Kun'yomi: ふせ(ぐ) (fusegu)
- Strokes: 7
- Level: JLPT N3 · set Conflict & rivalry 1

## How to remember 防

A town (阝) turned to face one direction (方): ready to defend.

Parts: 阝 town; hill · 方 direction; banner

## Words with 防

| Word | Reading | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 防ぐ | ふせぐ (fusegu) | to defend against; to protect against |

## More in the “Conflict & rivalry 1” set

[戦](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/war/) · [勝](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/win/) · [軍](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/army/) · [争](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/compete/) · [防](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/defend/) · [害](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/harm/)

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