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道Nihongo Path
専

専·exclusive, specialty, solely

On-yomi
セン
Kun-yomi
もっぱ(ら)

By Nihongo PathUpdated

Stroke order

Write it in this order; the numbers mark where each stroke starts.

9 strokes, numbered in writing order. Data: KanjiVG (CC BY-SA 3.0).

Common words

WordReadingMeaning
専門せんもんspecialty, field of expertise
専攻せんこうmajor (at university)
専用せんようexclusive use
専念せんねんdevoting oneself
専らもっぱらexclusively, mainly

Example sentences

  1. 彼は日本文学を専攻している。

    かれはにほんぶんがくをせんこうしている。

    He is majoring in Japanese literature.

  2. この駐車場は関係者専用です。

    このちゅうしゃじょうはかんけいしゃせんようです。

    This parking lot is for authorized personnel only.

  3. 今は治療に専念してください。

    いまはちりょうにせんねんしてください。

    Please devote yourself to treatment for now.

Similar-looking kanji

Do not confuse these on the exam.

Common mistakes

  • 専門 is written with 門 (gate), not 問 (question). 専問 is a common writing error.
  • 専 has no dot at the top right. Adding one turns it toward 博.

Memory aid

Picture it

A single hand 寸 holding one thing only: doing one thing exclusively is a specialty.

Vocabulary using this kanji

Quick check

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What does the kanji 専 mean?