How to read 角: 3 readings with examples

The Jōyō Kanji table lists 3 readings for 角. Which one you use depends on the word it sits in, so learn the words below and the reading comes with them.

On'yomi

カクkaku

Kun'yomi

かどkadoつのtsuno

Word	Reading	Type	Meaning
三角	さんかくsankaku	On	triangle
角度	かくどkakudo	On	angle
街角	まちかどmachikado	Kun	street corner
曲がり角	まがりかどmagarikado	Kun	turning corner
牛の角	うしのつのushinotsuno	Kun	a cow's horn

How to tell which reading of 角 to use

カク is used in compounds, often about angles and shapes (三角, 角度).
かど is a corner you can turn or bump into (街角, 机の角).
つの is an animal's horn (牛の角). On its own, 角 can be either かど or つの, so context decides.

Seen in JapanApartment listings: 角部屋 (kado-beya) is a corner unit.

Quiz

Can you read these sentences?

Why does one kanji have so many readings?

Kanji came to Japan from China over several centuries. Each wave brought the Chinese pronunciation of its time and place, and Japanese kept the older sounds alongside the newer ones. Those borrowed sounds are the on'yomi. For example, 生 is セイ in 先生 but ショウ in 一生. Japanese also attached its own native words to the characters, and those are the kun'yomi.

Sounds also shift when words join: ひ becomes び in 日曜日, ひと becomes びと in 人々, and ふん becomes ぷん in 三分. That is why the readings listed in a dictionary don't always match what you hear.