| The Kanji |
Readings, Meanings &
Examples |
| 日 |
1)
jitsu, 2) nichi, 3) hi,
4) ~ka (suffix for counting days) - the
sun, day
Don't ask me why it
isn't round!
|
ある日
aru
hi - one day (as in: one day when I was a
student...)
毎日 mai nichi -
everyday
今日 kyou -
today [irregular]
日曜日 nichi you bi -
Sunday |
|
| 月 |
1)
gatsu (month names), 2) getsu (other
times),
3) tsuki - month, the moon
This is a sun (日) with legs -- the
moon runs faster around the earth, therefore it
needs legs
|
一月 ichi gatsu -
January [lit. 1st month]
今月 kon getsu -
this month
月 tsuki - the
moon
月曜日 getsu you bi -
Monday |
|
| 火 |
1)
ka, 2) hi - fire, light
Think of it as sparks
coming from a person
|
花火 hana bi -
fireworks [note how the hi becomes a bi]
火花 hi bana -
sparks [sometimes you can reverse kanji and get a
different meaning - note here how the hana
becomes bana]
火山 ka zan -
volcano [lit. fire mountain]
火曜日 ka you bi -
Tuesday |
|
| 水 |
1)
sui, 2) mizu - water
Squeeze a river (川 kawa) and you get water (mizu)
|
大水 oo mizu -
flood [lit. big water]
水着 mizu gi -
swimsuit, bathing suit
水曜日 sui you bi -
Wednesday |
|
| 木 |
1)
moku, 2) boku, 3) ki -
tree, wood
This is a tree with 2
low hanging branches
|
木登り
ki
nobori - tree climbing
松の木 matsu no ki -
pine tree
木曜日 moku you bi -
Thursday |
|
| 金 |
1)
kin, 2) kon - gold; 3) kane
- money
Think of gold being
buried under the roof of a house
|
お金 okane -
money [note: the o is added for 'respect.'
You will see more of this o]
賞金 shou kin -
prize money
金曜日 kin you bi -
Friday |
|
| 土 |
1)
do, 2) to, 3) tsuchi -
earth, ground, soil
It's a cross in the ground
|
粘土 nen do -
clay
土地 to chi -
ground, area, soil
土曜日 do you bi -
Saturday |
|
| 本 |
1)
hon - book, counter for long, slender
objects
Just as the kanji is
made from ki (木) so is a book made from trees
|
日本 ni hon -
Japan
絵本 e hon - a
picture book (for children)
本 hon - a
book |
|
| 休 |
1)
kyuu, 2) yasu(mi or mu)
- rest, vacation
This is a picture of
a person (left) resting against
a tree
|
夏休み
natsu
yasumi - summer vacation
昼休み hiru yasumi -
lunch break
お休みなさい
oyasuminasai
- 'Good night!' |
|
| 語 |
1)
go - word, speech, a language 2) katari
- narration, 3) kata(ru) - to
tell, to speak
I know this one looks
difficult, but learn it! It is
actually fun to write. You may recognize the
parts. To the left is (言) which
means to speak. The top right is (五) which you
have learned to be 5 and the bottom is (口) which
means mouth
|
日本語
ni
hon go - Japanese
物語 mono gatari -
a story, tale, legend
国語 koku go -
national language (in Japan, Japanese) |
|
| 年 |
1)
nen, 2) toshi - year
|
一年 ichi nen -
one year
二年前 ne nen mae -
two years ago
去年 kyo nen -
last year |
|
| 午 |
1)
go - noon
Be careful to not
confuse this one with 牛 ushi (cow)
|
午後 go go -
afternoon (PM)
午前 go zen -
morning (AM)
午後二時 go go ni ji -
2 O'clock in the afternoon |
|
| 前 |
1)
zen, 2) mae - before,
in front of, previous
Remember: there is a month
in there
|
名前 na mae -
name
前書き mae gaki -
preface [lit. before the writing]
二年前 ne nen mae -
two years ago- |
|
| 後 |
1)
go, 2) kou, 3) ushi(ro)
- behind; 4) nochi -
after
|
最後 sai go -
the last, the end, conclusion
後ろ ushiro -
behind
後書き ata gaki -
postscript, afterword [lit. after the writing] |
|
| 時 |
1)
ji, 2) toki - time
The sun is very
important in telling time: 日
|
時間 ji kan -
time
時々 toki doki -
sometimes [the 々 character means to
repeat]
江戸時代 e do ji dai -
the Edo period
何時ですか？
nan
ji desu ka? - What time is it? |
|
| 間 |
1)
kan, 2) ken, 3) aida -
interval, space 4) ma -
interval, room, time
The 門 is the kanji that means 'gate.' So
in the interval of the gate
there is a sun.
|
時間 ji kan -
time
昼間 hiru ma -
daytime
居間 i ma -
living room |
|
| 毎 |
1)
mai - every...
Every time
you draw this kanji say, 'every'
|
毎日
mai nichi -
everyday
毎朝 mai asa - every morning
毎週 mai shuu - every week |
|
| 先 |
1)
sen, 2) saki -
previous, ahead
It has two legs so it
always walks ahead
|
先生 sen sei -
teacher
どうぞ、お先に
douzo,
osaki ni - Please go first.
先日 sen jitsu -
the other day |
|
| 今 |
1)
kon, 2) kin, 3) ima -
now, the present
It looks like someone
with a hat is eating with his mouth wide open now
|
今月 kon getsu -
this month
今晩は kon
ban wa - Good
night [lit. as for this night]
今度 kon do - next time [you would think this
means this time!] |
|
| 何 |
1)
ka, 2) nani, 3) nan - what, how many
This is a useful one
|
何人 nan nin -
how many people?
何か nani ka -
something
何？ nani? -
What?
何時ですか？
nan
ji desu ka? - What time is it? |
|
All the Kanji on the Level 4
Test: #2 
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