# 筆 — writing brush

筆 means “writing brush”. It is a JLPT N3 kanji written with 12 strokes. On'yomi: ヒツ (hitsu). Kun'yomi: ふで (fude). You'll see it in words such as 筆 (fude, “writing brush; paintbrush”).

- Meaning: writing brush
- On'yomi: ヒツ (hitsu)
- Kun'yomi: ふで (fude)
- Strokes: 12
- Level: JLPT N3 · set Things 2

## How to remember 筆

Bamboo (竹) with a brush (聿) tip: a writing brush.

Parts: 竹 bamboo · 聿 brush

## Words with 筆

| Word | Reading | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 筆 | ふで (fude) | writing brush; paintbrush |

## Don't confuse it with

[第](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/ordinal-number/) · [箋](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/memo-paper/)

## More in the “Things 2” set

[器](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/container/) · [具](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/tool/) · [筆](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/writing-brush/) · [荷](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/luggage/) · [箱](https://moji.ninja/n3-kanji/box/)

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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/writing-brush/. Last updated 2026-11-01.