Meet 毒 in practical contexts, from poisonous plants to disinfecting a wound.
The idea
毒 has eight strokes; follow the linked diagram. It is read どく in 毒, 有毒（ゆうどく）, 食中毒（しょくちゅうどく） and 消毒（しょうどく）. Learn each compound as a whole.
Examples
- 毒のある植物には触らないでください。Please do not touch poisonous plants.
- 毒きのこを食べてはいけません。You must not eat poisonous mushrooms.
- 食中毒を防ぐために、手を洗います。I wash my hands to prevent food poisoning.
- 医師が傷を消毒しました。The doctor disinfected the wound.
- この蛇には毒がありません。This snake has no venom.
- 有毒なガスが漏れました。A toxic gas leaked.
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No Japanese device voice is available. You can still read the text and use the linked listening resources.
Watch out
消毒 means disinfection, not poisoning: 消 conveys removal. 有毒 describes something poisonous, while 食中毒 is food poisoning.
Try it yourself
Write the reading of 毒 in hiragana.
Show answer or example answer
どく
毒 is どく: it means poison or venom, depending on context.
Write the reading of 消毒 in hiragana.
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しょうどく
消毒 is しょうどく, meaning disinfection; 消 points to removing the danger.
Choose the missing kanji: 有＿（ゆうどく）［毒／母］.
Show answer or example answer
毒
毒 completes 有毒（ゆうどく）, meaning toxic or poisonous.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Japanese sentences where available. We keep your score.
Write the reading of 毒 in hiragana.
Write the reading of 消毒 in hiragana.
Choose the missing kanji: 有＿（ゆうどく）［毒／母］.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
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Write 毒 using the diagram, then read 有毒 and 消毒 aloud and make a sentence with one.