音読み: ザン
訓読み: のこる・のこす
画数: 10 strokes
部首: 歹（がつへん / death）
Meaning
Remain, leftover, cruel — often used for things not used up or that evoke harsh feelings.
- 残業 — overtime work
- 残念 — regrettable
- 残す — to leave behind
- 残る — to remain
- 無残 — brutal, cruel
The radical 歹 (death/decay) combined with 㔾 (cutting) suggests something left after removal or death — symbolically what remains. It can also imply emotional harshness or cruelty in words like 無残.
ご飯を残さないでください。
Please don’t leave any rice uneaten.
彼の言葉は 残酷だった。
His words were cruel.
残念ですが、できません。
Unfortunately, I can’t do it.
🎧 Use the buttons above to listen. This kanji has a strong emotional nuance — from simply “left behind” to “harsh and painful.”