竿

さお

rod, pole (e.g., for drying laundry)

Also:neck (of a shamisen, etc.), beam (i.e. the crossbar of a balance), single line (esp. as a flying formation for geese)

NounJLPT N1

What does 竿 mean?

竿 is a Japanese noun meaning “rod, pole (e.g., for drying laundry)” in English. It can also be translated as “neck (of a shamisen, etc.), beam (i.e. the crossbar of a balance), single line (esp. as a flying formation for geese)” depending on context. It is written as 竿 in kanji, さお in hiragana, and sao in romaji. This word is part of JLPT N1 vocabulary.