# 悲 — sad; sorrow

悲 means “sad; sorrow”. It is a JLPT N3 kanji written with 12 strokes. On'yomi: ヒ (hi). Kun'yomi: かな(しい) (kanashii). You'll see it in words such as 悲しみ (kanashimi, “sadness; sorrow”).

- Meaning: sad; sorrow
- On'yomi: ヒ (hi)
- Kun'yomi: かな(しい) (kanashii)
- Strokes: 12
- Level: JLPT N3 · set Feelings 1

## How to remember 悲

A heart (心) that says no (非): sad.

Sounds like 非: both read ヒ.

Parts: 非 non- · 心 heart

## Words with 悲

| Word | Reading | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 悲しみ | かなしみ (kanashimi) | sadness; sorrow |
| 悲しむ | かなしむ (kanashimu) | to be sad; to mourn for |
| 悲しい | かなしい (kanashii) | sad; miserable |

## More in the “Feelings 1” set

[感](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/feeling/) · [情](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/emotion/) · [望](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/hope/) · [苦](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/bitter/) · [幸](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/happiness/) · [悲](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/sad/)

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