先 Kanji: Meaning, Readings and Stroke Order

先: before; ahead; tip; previous. JLPT N5; 6 strokes.

Readings

On readings

セン

Kun readings

さき、ま.ず

Romaji

sen, saki, mazu

Study notes

先 means 'first, ahead' in time and space, and also 'point, end'.

On reading: セン in 先生 (せんせい, teacher; doctor), 先週 (せんしゅう, last week), 先月 (せんげつ, last month), 先日 (せんじつ, the other day), 先輩 (せんぱい, senpai, senior colleague), 優先 (ゆうせん, priority).

Kun readings: さき, 'point; first; ahead': 先に (さきに, first, in advance), 指先 (ゆびさき, tip of the finger), 行き先 (いきさき, destination), 宛先 (あてさき, recipient's address). まず (先ず, first of all) is almost always written in hiragana.

Remember: 先生 (せんせい) is not used only for teachers, but also for doctors, lawyers and other professionals.

Example words

• 先生 (せんせい) — teacher; instructor
• 先 (さき) — ahead; before
• 先ず (まず) — first of all

Example sentences

先に行ってください。

saki ni itte kudasai.

Please go ahead.

Stroke order

Follow the steps in order. Each new stroke is highlighted.

Stroke paths: KanjiVG, CC BY-SA 3.0. Sequential diagrams derived from the original paths.