官 appears in words for officials and public roles. Learn it through complete words and their contexts.

The idea

官 has 8 strokes and its common on-reading is かん. Read 警察官（けいさつかん）, 官僚（かんりょう） and 外交官（がいこうかん） as whole words; consult the linked diagram for stroke order.

Patterns to compare
Japanese wordReadingExample in context
警察官けいさつかんMy older sister is a police officer.
官僚かんりょうA government official explained the new policy.
外交官がいこうかんThe diplomat works at the embassy.
裁判官さいばんかんA judge reads the documents.

Examples

  • 姉あねは警察官けいさつかんです。My older sister is a police officer.
  • 警察官けいさつかんが子供こどもを助たすけました。The police officer helped the child.
  • 官僚かんりょうが新あたらしい政策せいさくを説明せつめいしました。A government official explained the new policy.
  • 外交官がいこうかんは大使館たいしかんで働はたらいています。The diplomat works at the embassy.
  • 裁判官さいばんかんが書類しょるいを読よみます。A judge reads the documents.
  • 友達ともだちは外交官がいこうかんになりたいです。My friend wants to become a diplomat.

Read-aloud uses a synthetic Japanese voice available on your device. Voice quality and availability vary; it does not assess your pronunciation.

Watch out

官 refers to an official or an official role; 館 often denotes a building, as in 大使館 (embassy). Both can be read かん, so check the word and its context.

Try it yourself

  1. Write the reading of 警察官 in hiragana.

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    けいさつかん

    警察官 is けいさつかん: a police officer. 官 contributes かん at the end.

  2. Write the reading of 官僚 in hiragana.

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    かんりょう

    官僚 is かんりょう: a government bureaucrat. Learn the reading with the whole word.

  3. Choose the missing kanji: 外交＿（がいこうかん）［官／館］.

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    官

    官 completes 外交官（がいこうかん）, a diplomat; 館 is used in 大使館, an embassy.

Use it today

Write 官 following the diagram. Cover the readings, recall 警察官 and 官僚, then make a sentence with 外交官.