1-500 of 2500 Kanji

🌏 public list

2,500 kanji ordered in a list that expresses the relative frequency of occurence of a character in the modern Japanese. The survey is based on newspaper articles.

連【れん】 two reams (of paper); 1000 sheets of paper / stanza; verse / tribe (in taxonomy) / quinella; quiniela / party; company; group; set / counter for things strung in a line, e.g. pearls, dried fish, spans of a bridge, etc. / counter for falcons
労【ろう】 labor; labour; toil; trouble; pains; work; effort; striving
六【ろく】 six
論【ろん】 argument; discussion; dispute; controversy; discourse; debate / theory (e.g. of evolution); doctrine / essay; treatise; comment
和【わ】 sum / harmony; peace / Japan; Japanese-style
話【はなし】 talk; speech; chat; story; conversation / discussions; negotiation; argument
量【りょう】 quantity; amount; volume; portion (of food)
襟【えり】 collar; lapel; neckband; neck / nape of the neck; scruff of the neck
力【ちから】 force; strength; might; vigour (vigor); energy / capability; ability; proficiency; capacity; faculty / efficacy; effect / effort; endeavours (endeavors); exertions / power; authority; influence; good offices; agency / support; help; aid; assistance / stress; emphasis / means; resources
例【れい】 custom; practice; habit; usual / said; aforementioned / instance; example; case; illustration; usage / precedent
かなめ《要》 pivot / vital point; cornerstone; keystone / Japanese photinia
来【らい】 next (year, etc.) / since (last month, etc.)
落ち【おち】 slip; omission / outcome; final result; the end / punch line (of a joke)
利【り】 advantage; benefit; profit; interest
理【り】 reason; principle; logic / general principle (as opposed to individual concrete phenomenon) / (in neo-Confucianism) the underlying principles of the cosmos
率【りつ】 rate; ratio; proportion; percentage
流【りゅう】 fashion; way; style; manner / school (of thought) / class; rank; rate / current (electrical, water, etc.); flow; stream
両【りょう】 both (e.g. both shoulders, etc.) / ryo (obsolete unit of currency) / 41-42 g (one sixteenth of a kin) / 2 tan (measure of fabric size) / counter for carriages (e.g. in a train); counter for vehicles
料【りょう】 fee; charge; rate / material
葉【は】 leaf; blade (of grass); (pine) needle
形【かたち】 form; shape; figure / visage
よう《様》 appearing ...; looking ... / way to ...; method of ...ing / form; style; design / like; similar to / thing (thought or spoken)
用【よう】 business; task; errand; engagement / use; purpose / for the use of ...; used for ...; made for ... / call of nature; excretion
与【むた】 together with ...
余【よ】 over; more than / I; me
有【ゆう】 existence / possession; having / limited company
由【よし】 reason; significance; cause / piece of information that one has heard; I hear that ...; it is said that ...
優【やさ】 gentle; affectionate
約【やく】 approximately; about / promise / shortening; reduction; simplification / contraction (in phonetics)
木【き】 tree; shrub; bush / wood; timber
目【め】 eye; eyeball / eyesight; sight; vision / look; stare; glance / an experience / viewpoint / stitch; texture; weave / ordinal number suffix / somewhat; -ish
問い【とい】 question; query
門【もん】 gate / branch of learning based on the teachings of a single master / division; phylum / counter for cannons
夜【よる】 evening; night
野【の】 plain; field / hidden (structural) member / wild / lacking a political post
役【やく】 use; service; role / post; position / scoring combination (e.g. in mahjong, card games, etc.); hand
名【な】 name; given name / title / fame; renown; reputation / pretext; pretense; justification; appearance
命【いのち】 life; life force / lifetime; lifespan / most important thing; foundation; core / paired tattoos of the "life" kanji on the upper arms of a man and woman (indicating unwavering love) / fate; destiny; karma
明【みょう】 vidya (wisdom) / mantra / the coming (4th of July, etc.)
面【めん】 face / mask; face guard / (in kendo) striking the head / surface (esp. a geometrical surface) / page / aspect; facet; side / chamfer / counter for broad, flat objects, levels or stages, e.g. in a video game
味【あじ】 flavor; flavour; taste / charm; style / experience / smart; clever; witty; strange
民【たみ】 people; citizens; subjects; folk
無【む】 nothing; naught; nought; nil; zero / un-; non-
ごと《毎》 each; every
末【すえ】 tip; top / end; close (e.g. close of the month) / youngest child / descendants; offspring; posterity / future / finally / trivialities
万【まん】 10,000; ten thousand / myriad / everything; all / various
補【ほ】 assistant ...; probationary ...
報【ほう】 information; news; report
方【かた】 direction; way / person; lady; gentleman / method of; manner of; way of / care of ... / person in charge of ... / side (e.g. "on my mother's side")
法【ほう】 law; act; principle / method / mood / dharma
望【ぼう】 full moon / 15th day of the lunar month
北【きた】 north / the North; northern territories / North Korea / north wind
本【ほん】 book; volume; script / this; present / main; head / real; regular / counter for long cylindrical things; counter for films, TV shows, etc.; counter for goals, home runs, etc.; counter for telephone calls
文【ぶん】 sentence / composition; text; writings / the literary arts (as opposed to the military arts); academia; literature / statement
平【ひら】 something broad and flat / common; ordinary; plain; rank-and-file / low-ranking employee; freshman; novice; private
メートル《米》 metre; meter / meter; gauge
別【べつ】 distinction; difference; different; another; particular; separate; extra; exception
変【へん】 strange; odd; peculiar; weird; curious; queer; eccentric; funny; suspicious; fishy / unexpected / change / incident; disturbance; disaster; accident / flat
辺【へん】 area; vicinity; region / side; edge / circumstances
負【ふ】 negative; minus
武【ぶ】 the art of war; martial arts; military arts / military force; the sword / valor; bravery / military officer; military man
部【ぶ】 department (in an organization); division; bureau / club / part; component; element / category / counter for copies of a newspaper or magazine
副【ふく】 assistant; associate; vice-; sub-; deputy; substitute; auxiliary; supplementary; additional; collateral / duplicate; copy / adverb
また《又》 again; and; also; still (doing something)
福【ふく】 good fortune
物【もの】 thing; object; article; stuff; substance / one's things; possessions; property; belongings / things; something; anything; everything; nothing / quality / reason; the way of things / used to emphasize emotion, judgment, etc.; used to indicate a common occurrence in the past (after a verb in past tense); used to indicate a general tendency; used to indicate something that should happen / item classified as ...; item related to ...; work of ... / cause of ...; cause for ... / somehow; somewhat; for some reason / really; truly
分【ぶん】 part; segment; share; ration / rate / degree; one's lot; one's status; relation; duty; kind; lot / relationship; connection; correspondence / in proportion to; just as much as
不【ふ】 un-; non-; negative prefix
付き【つき】 furnished with; including / attached to / impression; appearance / luck / sociality / under; assistant (e.g. to a manager) / soup base
妻【つま】 wife / my dear; dear; honey / garnish (esp. one served with sashimi) / embellishment
府【ふ】 (metropolitan) prefecture (of Osaka and Kyoto) / the centre or seat (of) (center) / (government) office
八【はち】 eight
発【はつ】 departure; departing (from ...); departing (at time ...) / sending; sent (by ...); sent (at ...) / engine / counter for gunshots, bursts of gas, etc.; counter for bullets, bombs, etc.; counter for blows (punches)
判【はん】 seal; stamp; monogram signature / judgment; judgement / size (of paper or books)
半【はん】 half; semi- / half-past / odd number / unit of land area (595.8 m^2)
反【たん】 variable measure of fabric (28.8 cm in width); for kimonos: at least 10 m in length; for haori: at least 7.27 m in length; for other clothes: at least 6.06 m in length / 300 tsubo (991.74 meters square, 0.24506 acres) / six ken (10.91 m)
番【ばん】 number (in a series) / (one's) turn / watch; guard; lookout / bout; match
ころ《頃》 (approximate) time; around; about; toward / suitable time (or condition) / time of year; season
被【ひ】 indicates the target of an activity; -ee (e.g. employee, examinee, trustee)
費【ひ】 cost; expense
非【ひ】 fault; error; mistake / going poorly; being disadvantageous; being unfavorable / un-; non-; an-
美【び】 beauty
必【ひつ】 definiteness; certainty
百【ひゃく】 100; hundred
票【ひょう】 vote; ballot / label; ticket; tag; stub
表【おもて】 surface / face (i.e. the visible side of an object) / front (of a building, etc.); obverse side (i.e. "head") of a coin / outside; exterior / appearance / public / first half (of an inning); top (of an inning) / cover (for tatami mats, etc.) / foreground
評【ひょう】 criticism; commentary; a council
病【やまい】 illness; disease / bad habit; weakness; fault
品【しな】 article; item; thing; goods; stock / quality / flirtatiousness; coquetry
白【しろ】 white / innocence; innocent person / blank space / white go stone / white dragon tile / skewered grilled pig intestine
南【みなみ】 south
難【なん】 difficulty; trouble; hardship / accident; disaster; danger / fault; defect / criticism
二【に】 two
日【ひ】 day; days / sun; sunshine; sunlight / case (esp. unfortunate); event
入り【いり】 entering / setting (of the sun) / containing; content; audience / income / beginning
任【にん】 obligation; duty; charge; responsibility
年【とし】 year / age; years / past one's prime; old age
念【ねん】 sense; idea; thought; feeling / desire; concern / attention; care
能【のう】 talent; gift; function / noh (theatre)
脳【のう】 brain / brains; mind
農【のう】 farming; agriculture
派【は】 clique; faction; school
頭【あたま】 head / hair (on one's head) / mind; brains; intellect / leader; chief; boss; captain / top; tip / beginning; start / head; person / top structural component of a kanji / pair
動【どう】 motion; change; confusion
同【どう】 the same; the said; ibid.
導【しるべ】 guidance; guide
道【みち】 road; path; street; lane; passage / route; way / distance; journey / road (e.g. to victory); course / way (of living, proper conduct, etc.); moral principles / teachings (esp. Confucian or Buddhist); dogma / field (e.g. of medicine); subject; speciality / means; way; method
得【とく】 profit; advantage; benefit; gain / rebirth in paradise, entering nirvana
独【どく】 Germany
内【うち】 inside; within / while / among; amongst; between / we; our / my spouse / imperial palace grounds / emperor / I; me
土【つち】 earth; soil; dirt; clay; mud / the earth (historically, esp. as opposed to the heavens); the ground; the land / low-quality torinoko-gami (containing mud) / (period of) refraining from construction in the direction of the god of the earth (in Onmyōdō)
党【とう】 party (political) / faction; -ite
島【しま】 island / territory (of a prostitute, organized crime gang, etc.); turf
投【とう】 pitching ability / counter for pitches
東【ひがし】 east
当【とう】 this (business organisation or place)
答え【こたえ】 answer; reply; response; solution
藤【ふじ】 wisteria (esp. Japanese wisteria, Wisteria floribunda); wistaria
度【たび】 time (three times, each time, etc.); times
都【と】 metropolitan; municipal
張【ちょう】 Chinese "Extended Net" constellation (one of the 28 mansions) / counter for objects with stretched strings (i.e. bows, kotos), curtains, papers, etc.
朝【あさ】 morning
町【まち】 town; block; neighbourhood; neighborhood / street; road / 109.09 m / 0.99 hectares / downtown; main street
調【ちょう】 pitch; tone; key / time; tempo / mood; tendency; style / tax paid in kind (ritsuryo period); first a tax on rice fields and households, then on individuals
丈【たけ】 height; stature / length (esp. of clothing) / all (one has); everything / magnificence (of a waka poem, etc.)
直【なお】 straight / ordinary; common / doing nothing
通【つう】 connoisseur; authority / counter for letters, notes, documents, etc.
さだ《定》 certainly; truly
ひさげ《提》 ceremonial sake decanter with a spout and semicircular handle
的【てき】 -like; typical
展【てん】 exhibition; exhibit
店【みせ】 store; shop; establishment; restaurant
くるり《転》 turning around (once) / suddenly; abruptly / completely (wrapped in something); quickly (unwrapping something) / beautiful, round (eyes) / flail (for threshing grain)
点【てん】 spot; mark / point; dot / mark (e.g. in exam); score; points / comma / aspect; matter; respect / counter for goods, items, articles of clothing, works of art, etc.
つて《伝》 means of making contact; intermediary; go-between / connections; influence; pull; good offices
田【た】 rice field
稲妻【いなずま】 lightning; flash of lightning; lightning bolt
注【ちゅう】 annotation; explanatory note; comment
段【だん】 step; stair; (flight of) steps; (row of) stitches; columns (of print) / grade; rank; level / counter for breaks in written language (or speech, etc.) / dan; senior rank in martial arts, go, shogi, etc.
男【おとこ】 man; male / fellow; guy; chap; bloke / male lover; boyfriend; man / manliness; manly honor; manly honour; manly reputation
談【だん】 talk; story; conversation
知【ち】 wisdom / jnana (higher knowledge)
地【ち】 earth; ground; land; soil / place / territory / bottom (of a package, book, etc.) / earth (one of the five elements)
着【ちゃく】 counter for suits of clothing / arriving at ...
中【なか】 inside; in / among; within / center (centre); middle / during; while
断【だん】 decision; judgment; resolution
宅【たく】 house; home / one's husband
沢【さわ】 swamp; marsh / mountain stream; valley; dale
たち《達》 pluralizing suffix (esp. for people & animals; formerly honorific)
団【だん】 body; group; party; company; troupe
世【よ】 world; society; age; generation
台【だい】 stand; rack; table; bench; podium; pedestal; platform; stage / support; holder; rack / counter for machines, incl. vehicles / setting (e.g. in jewellery) / level (e.g. price level); range (e.g. after physical units); period (of time, e.g. a decade of one's life) / elevated area / viewing platform / dish tray / meal / tall building; tower
大【おお】 big; large
第【だい】 prefix for forming ordinal numbers
題【だい】 title; subject; theme; topic / problem (on a test); question / counter for questions (on a test)
体【てい】 appearance; air; condition; state; form
体【からだ】 body / torso; trunk / build; physique; constitution / health / corpse; dead body
対【つい】 pair; couple; set / antithesis / counter for items that come in pairs / counter for sets (of clothes, small furniture, utensils, etc.)
想【そう】 conception; idea; thought / samjna (perception)
早【はや】 already; now; by this time
相【あい】 together; mutually; fellow
総【そう】 whole; all; general; gross; entire; overall
増【ぞう】 increase
蔵【くら】 warehouse; storehouse; cellar; magazine; granary; godown; depository; treasury; elevator
そば《側》 near; close; beside; vicinity; proximity; besides; while / third person
足【あし】 foot / leg / gait / pace / bottom structural component (i.e. radical) of a kanji / means of transportation / money; coin
族【ぞく】 tribe; clan; band / (taxonomical) tribe / group (of the periodic table)
続【ぞく】 continuation; sequel
村【むら】 village
多【た】 multi-
ダース《打》 dozen
組【くみ】 set (of items) / group (of people); class (of students); company (esp. construction); family (i.e. mafia); team / typesetting; composition
席【せき】 seat / location (of a gathering, etc.); place / position; post
石【いし】 stone / gem; jewel
切【せつ】 eager; earnest; ardent; kind; keen; acute
説【せつ】 theory; doctrine / opinion; view / rumour; rumor; gossip; hearsay
先【さき】 previous; prior; former; first; earlier; some time ago; preceding / point (e.g. pencil); tip; end; nozzle / head (of a line); front / ahead; the other side / the future; hereafter / destination / the other party
千【せん】 1,000; thousand
川【かわ】 river; stream / River; the ... river
戦【いくさ】 war; battle; campaign; fight / troops; forces
線【せん】 line; stripe; stria / line (e.g. telephone line); wire / ray (e.g. X-ray); beam / line (e.g. of a railroad); track; route; lane / outline; contours; form / level / division / line (of action); position; approach; policy; principle / impression one leaves; air one gives off
選【せん】 selection; choice; choosing; picking; election
先【さき】 previous; prior; former; first; earlier; some time ago; preceding / point (e.g. pencil); tip; end; nozzle / head (of a line); front / ahead; the other side / the future; hereafter / destination / the other party
然【ぜん】 -like
全【ぜん】 all; whole; entire; complete; overall / pan-; omni-; toti-
税【ぜい】 tax
政【まつりごと】 rule; government
正【せい】 (logical) true; regular / 10^40; ten thousand undecillion / original / positive; greater than zero
生【なま】 raw; uncooked; fresh / natural; as it is; unedited; unprocessed / unprotected (i.e. not wearing a condom) / live (i.e. not recorded) / inexperienced; unpolished; green; crude / impudence; sauciness / unpasteurized beer; draft beer; draught beer / just a little; somehow; vaguely; partially; somewhat; half-; semi- / irresponsibly; half-baked / cash / tipsiness
声【こえ】 voice / singing (of a bird); chirping (of an insect); hoot / voice; opinion (as expressed in words); view; wish; attitude; will / sound / sense (of something's arrival); feeling / voice; voiced sound
製【せい】 -made; make
西【にし】 west
世【よ】 world; society; age; generation
制【せい】 system; organization; organisation; imperial command; laws; regulation; control; government; suppression; restraint; holding back; establishment
勢い【いきおい】 force; vigor; vigour; energy; spirit; life / influence; authority; power; might / impetus; momentum; course (of events) / naturally; necessarily
性【せい】 nature (of a person) / sex / gender / -ty; -ity; -ness; -cy
水【みず】 water (esp. cool, fresh water, e.g. drinking water) / fluid (esp. in an animal tissue); liquid / flood; floodwaters / water offered to wrestlers just prior to a bout / break granted to wrestlers engaged in a prolonged bout
数【かず】 number; amount
永久【えいきゅう】 eternity; permanence; perpetuity / Eikyū era (1113.7.13-1118.4.3)
情【じょう】 feelings; emotion; sentiment / compassion; sympathy / passion; affection; love / the way things really are; the actual situation
筋【すじ】 muscle; tendon; sinew / vein; artery / fiber; fibre; string / line; stripe; streak / reason; logic / plot; storyline / lineage; descent / school (e.g. of scholarship or arts) / aptitude; talent / source (of information, etc.); circle; channel / well-informed person (in a transaction) / logical move (in go, shogi, etc.) / ninth vertical line / seam on a helmet / gristly fish paste (made of muscle, tendons, skin, etc.) / social position; status / on (a river, road, etc.); along / counter for long thin things; counter for roads or blocks when giving directions / (Edo period) counter for hundreds of mon (obsolete unit of currency)
状【じょう】 shape; state / letter; correspondence
職【しょく】 job; work; employment; occupation; position / duties / trade; skill
食【しょく】 meal; (one's) diet; food; foodstuff; foodstuffs / eclipse (solar, lunar, etc.)
信【しん】 honesty; sincerity; fidelity / trust; reliance; confidence / (religious) faith; devotion / counter for received messages
心【こころ】 mind; heart; spirit / the meaning of a phrase (riddle, etc.)
新【しん】 new; neo- / Gregorian calendar / Xin (dynasty of China)
御【み】 august / beautiful
申【さる】 ninth sign of the Chinese zodiac (The Monkey, 3pm-5pm, west-southwest, July)
真【しん】 truth; reality; genuineness / seriousness / logical TRUE / printed style writing / star performer
神【かみ】 god; deity; divinity; spirit; kami / incredible; fantastic / emperor of Japan / thunder
親【おや】 parent; parents; mother and father / dealer (in cards, mahjong, etc.); banker / founder; inventor / (pet) owner / key; parent (organization); main / ancestor; forefather
身【み】 body / oneself / one's place; one's position / main part; meat (as opposed to bone, skin, etc.); wood (as opposed to bark); blade (as opposed to its handle); container (as opposed to its lid)
人【ひと】 man; person / human being; mankind; people / human (Homo sapiens); humans as a species / character; personality / man of talent; true man / another person; other people; others / adult
場【ば】 place; spot; space / field; discipline; sphere; realm / occasion; situation / scene (of a play, movie, etc.) / session (of the stock market) / area in which cards are laid out (in a card game) / round (i.e. east, south, etc.) / field / field (gestalt psychology)
初【はつ】 first; new
ところ《所》 place; spot; scene; site / address / district; area; locality / one's house / point; aspect; side; facet / passage (in text); part / space; room / thing; matter / whereupon; as a result / about to; on the verge of / was just doing; was in the process of doing; have just done; just finished doing
文【ふみ】 letter; writings
助【じょ】 help; rescue; assistant
女【おんな】 female; woman; female sex / female lover; girlfriend; mistress; (someone's) woman
勝【しょう】 win; victory / beautiful scenery; scenic spot / counter for wins
商【しょう】 quotient / dealing; dealer; store / second degree (of the Japanese & Chinese pentatonic scale) / Shang (dynasty of China)
小【しょう】 smallness; small item / short month (i.e. having fewer than 31 days) / elementary school / younger or inferior (of two items or people with the same name) / unit of field area (approx. 400 sq m)
少【しょう】 small; little; few
松【まつ】 pine tree (Pinus spp.) / highest (of a three-tier ranking system)
印【しるし】 mark; sign / symbol; emblem / badge; crest; flag / evidence; proof / token (of gratitude, affection, etc.)
象【ぞう】 elephant (Elephantidae spp.)
賞【しょう】 prize; award
上【うえ】 above; up; over; elder (e.g. daughter) / top; summit / surface; on / before; previous / superiority; one's superior (i.e. one's elder) / on top of that; besides; what's more / upon (further inspection, etc.); based on (and occurring after) / matters concerning...; as concerns ... / since (i.e. "for that reason") / suffix indicating higher social standing / place of one's superior (i.e. the throne) / emperor; sovereign; shogun; daimyo / noblewoman (esp. the wife of a nobleman)
乗【じょう】 (nth) power / counter for vehicles / multiplication / Buddha's teachings
準【じゅん】 semi-; quasi-; associate
出【で】 coming out; going out; outflow; efflux; rising (of the sun or moon) / attending (work); appearing (on stage); one's turn to go on / start; beginning / origins; background; person (or item) originating from ...; graduate of ...; native of ...; member of ... (lineage) / architectural member that projects outward / highest point of the stern of a ship / amount (comprising something); amount of time or effort required to do something
術【じゅつ】 art; technique / means; way / trick; trap; plot; stratagem / magic
衆【しゅう】 great numbers (of people); numerical superiority; masses / people; folk; clique; bunch
集【しゅう】 collection; compilation
住【じゅう】 dwelling; living
十【じゅう】 ten
重【え】 -fold; -ply
首【くび】 neck / head / dismissal; discharge; firing (from a job)
受【じゅ】 vedana (sensation)
州【しゅう】 state; province; county; oblast; department (of ancient China) / continent / dear
終わり【おわり】 the end
手【て】 hand; arm / forepaw; foreleg / handle / hand; worker; help / trouble; care; effort / means; way; trick; move; technique; workmanship / hand; handwriting / kind; type; sort / one's hands; one's possession / ability to cope / hand (of cards) / direction / move (in go, shogi, etc.)
種【たね】 seed (e.g. of a plant); pip; kind; variety; quality; tone / material (e.g. for an article); matter (e.g. of a story); subject; theme; (news) copy / ingredient; leaven (bread); main ingredient of a sushi / cause; source / trick; secret; magician's trick; inside story / paternal blood; lineage / breed (of a stock); sperm; semen
守り【まもり】 protection; defense; defence / providence / amulet; charm; talisman
取り【とり】 taking; taker; collecting; collector; remover; removal / last performer of the day (usu. the star performer); last performance of the day / active partner (e.g. in judo demonstration) / emphatic or formal prefix
主人【しゅじん】 head (of a household); proprietor (of a store); proprietress; landlord; landlady / one's husband / (one's) employer; (one's) master / host; hostess
若【わか】 youth / child (esp. of the young son of someone of high social standing) / young; new
社【やしろ】 shrine (usually Shinto)
者【もの】 person
車【くるま】 car; automobile; vehicle / wheel
自【じ】 self- / from ... / this ... (in contrast to some other ...); aforementioned
式【しき】 equation; formula; expression / ceremony / style / enforcement regulations (of the ritsuryo)
識【しき】 acquaintanceship / vijnana; consciousness / written by...
七【しち】 seven / hepta-
質【しつ】 quality; value / nature; inherent quality; character / logical quality
実【み】 fruit; nut / seed / (in broth) pieces of meat, vegetable, etc. / content; substance
視【し】 visual; vision
こと《事》 thing; matter / incident; occurrence; event; something serious; trouble; crisis / circumstances; situation; state of affairs / work; business; affair / after an inflectable word, creates a noun phrase indicating something the speaker does not feel close to / nominalizing suffix / pretending to ...; playing make-believe ... / alias; aka; nickname; alternative name; also known as
字【じ】 character (i.e. kanji) / hand-writing; penmanship / the ... word (i.e. "the L word" = "love")
時【とき】 time; hour; moment / occasion; case / chance; opportunity; season / the times; the age; the day / tense
次【つぎ】 next; following; subsequent / stage; station
指【ゆび】 finger; toe; digit
支【し】 China
死【し】 death; decease / death penalty (by strangulation or decapitation) / (an) out
氏【し】 Mr; Mrs; Ms; Miss / clan / he; him / counter for people
私【わたし】 I; me / private affairs; personal matter; secrecy / selfishness
四【よん】 four
姿【すがた】 figure; form; shape / appearance; dress; guise / state; condition; picture; image / form (of a waka) / dressed in ...; wearing ...
子【こ】 child / young (animal) / young woman; young geisha / offshoot / interest / new shares / player who is not a dealer (in cards, mahjong, etc.) / bird egg / -er (often of young women)
市【し】 city
三【さん】 three / tri-
三【さん】 three / tri-
山【やま】 mountain; hill / mine (e.g. coal mine) / heap; pile / crown (of a hat); thread (of a screw); tread (of a tire); protruding part of an object / climax; peak; critical point / guess; speculation / criminal case; crime / mountain climbing; mountaineering / festival float (esp. one mounted with a decorative halberd) / wall; wall tile / temple; temple grounds / wild
うぶ《初》 innocent; naive; unsophisticated; inexperienced; green; wet behind the ears / birth-
算【さん】 divining sticks / counting; calculation
残【ざん】 remaining; left-over; excess
仕【し】 official; civil service
使【し】 messenger / police and judicial chief (Heian and Kamakura periods) / klesha (polluting thoughts such as greed, hatred and delusion, which result in suffering)
さつ《察》 cops; police
策【さく】 plan; policy; means; measure; stratagem; scheme
裁【さい】 judge
際【さい】 on the occasion of; circumstances; juncture
在【ざい】 country; countryside / outskirts; suburbs / situated in; resident in
宝【たから】 treasure
作【さく】 work (e.g. of art); production / harvest; cultivation; farming; crop; yield / technique
昨【さく】 last (year); yesterday
差【さ】 difference; variation / difference
再【さい】 re-; again; repeated; deutero-; deuto-; deuter-
最【さい】 the most; the extreme / prime; conspicuous
年【とし】 year / age; years / past one's prime; old age
済み【ずみ】 arranged; taken care of; settled; completed; finished
行【ぎょう】 line (i.e. of text); row; verse / carya (austerities) / samskara (formations) / running script (a semi-cursive style of kanji)
高【たか】 quantity; amount; volume; number; amount of money
合【ごう】 gō; traditional unit of volume, approx. 0.1804 litres / gō; traditional unit of area, approx 0.33 metres square / one-tenth of the way from the base to the summit of a mountain / conjunction / counter for covered containers / counter for matches, battles, etc.
国【くに】 country; state / region / national government; central government / home (i.e. hometown, home country) / province (of Japan) / land; earth
今【いま】 now; the present time; just now; soon; immediately; (one) more
校【こう】 school / proof (of a book, document, etc.); counter for proofs
構え【かまえ】 structure; construction; appearance / posture (e.g. in martial arts); pose; stance / readiness; determination; preparedness / kanji enclosure type radical (must enclose at least two sides of the kanji)
港【みなと】 harbour; harbor; port
考【こう】 thought / report on one's investigation into ... / deceased father
君【きみ】 you; buddy; pal / monarch; ruler; sovereign; (one's) master
口【くち】 mouth / opening; hole; gap; orifice / mouth (of a bottle); spout; nozzle; mouthpiece / gate; door; entrance; exit / speaking; speech; talk (i.e. gossip) / taste; palate / mouth (to feed) / opening (i.e. vacancy); available position / invitation; summons / kind; sort; type / opening (i.e. beginning) / counter for mouthfuls, shares (of money), and swords
よしみ《誼》 friendship; friendly relations; connection; relation; intimacy
匠【たくみ】 workman; artisan; mechanic; carpenter / craft; skill / means; idea
後【あと】 behind; rear / after; later / after one's death / remainder; the rest / descendant; successor; heir / more (e.g. five more minutes); left / also; in addition / past; previous
語【ご】 language / word
こもごも《交々》 alternately; in succession
五【ご】 five
昼【ひる】 noon; midday / daytime / lunch
現つ【うつつ】 reality; consciousness
言【げん】 word; remark; statement
切り【きり】 end; finish; stop / bounds; limits / delivery date (of a futures contract) / finale (of a noh song); end of an act (in jōruri or kabuki); final performance of the day (in vaudeville) / counter for slices (esp. thick slices); counter for cuts (e.g. fish, meat) / only; just / since; after / remaining (in a particular state)
箇【か】 counter for the ichi-ni-san counting system (usu. directly preceding the item being counted); a noun read using its on-yomi
縦【たて】 the vertical; height / front-to-back; length / north-to-south / vertical (relationship); hierarchy / (weaving) warp
計【けい】 plan / meter; measuring device / (in) total; total (of)
決【けつ】 decision; vote
月【つき】 moon / month
くだん《件》 the aforementioned; the said; (man, incident, etc.) in question; the above-mentioned; the aforesaid / the usual
建て【たて】 contract; commitment
権【けん】 right (to do something) / authority; power
県【けん】 prefecture (of Japan) / county (of China)
見【み】 looking; viewing
試し【ためし】 trial; test
元【もと】 origin; source / base; basis; foundation; root / cause / ingredient; material / (somebody's) side; (somebody's) location / original cost (or capital, principal, etc.) / (plant) root; (tree) trunk / first section of a waka / counter for blades of grass, tree trunks, etc., and for falcons (in falconry) / handle (chopsticks, brush, etc.); grip
原【はら】 field; plain; prairie; tundra; moor; wilderness
減【げん】 reduction
形【かたち】 form; shape; figure / visage
影【かげ】 shadow; silhouette; figure; shape / reflection; image / ominous sign / light (stars, moon) / trace; shadow (of one's former self)
金【かね】 money / metal
銀【ぎん】 silver (Ag) / silver coin; money / silver medal / silver colour; silver color / bank / silver general
九【きゅう】 nine
区【く】 ward; district; section
空【そら】 sky; the air; the heavens / weather / far-off place; distant place / state of mind; feeling / (from) memory; (by) heart / falsehood; lie / somehow; vaguely / fake
軍【ぐん】 army; force; troops
係【かかり】 charge; duty; person in charge; official; clerk / connection; linking
型【かた】 model; type (e.g. of machine, goods, etc.) / type; style; pattern / mold (mould); template; model / kata (standard form of a movement, posture, etc. in martial arts, sport, etc.) / form (i.e. customary procedure) / size (i.e. clothing, shoes) / inch (in diagonal display size) / (taxonomical) form
業【ごう】 karma (i.e. actions committed in a former life)
局【きょく】 bureau; department / office (e.g. post, telephone); broadcasting station (e.g. television, radio); channel; exchange / affair; situation / game (of go, shogi, etc.)
極【きょく】 pole / climax; extreme; extremity; culmination; height; zenith; nadir
強【きょう】 a little over; a little more than / powerhouse; one of the biggest; one of the most powerful
境【さかい】 border; boundary / turning point; watershed / area; region; spot; space; environment / psychological state; mental state / cognitive object; something perceptible by the sense organs or mind
都【みやこ】 capital; metropolis; seat of government / capital (of music, fashion, etc.); city (e.g. of light) / location of the Imperial Palace
供【とも】 companion; follower; attendant; retinue
ごと《共》 including...; with ...; inclusive of; ...and all
気【き】 spirit; mind; heart / nature; disposition / motivation; intention / mood; feelings / ambience; atmosphere; mood
記【き】 account; history; chronicle; annals; record / Records of Ancient Matters
起こり【おこり】 source; origin; cause; beginning; genesis
技【わざ】 technique; art; skill
疑【ぎ】 doubt; distrust; suspicion (of)
義【ぎ】 morality; righteousness; justice; honour (honor) / meaning / teachings; doctrine / nonconsanguineous relationship (i.e. of in-laws) / prosthesis
議【ぎ】 discussion; deliberation / thought; opinion
宮【みや】 shrine / palace; imperial residence / member of the imperial family / headboard (on a bed); headstand / temple
急【きゅう】 sudden; abrupt; unexpected / urgent; pressing / steep; sharp; precipitous / rapid; swift; fast / emergency; crisis; danger / urgency; hurrying; haste / (in gagaku or noh) end of a song
球【きゅう】 sphere / counter for balls
期【き】 period; time / age / term (e.g. in office); period / session (e.g. of parliament) / stage (e.g. disease)
機【はた】 loom
元【もと】 origin; source / base; basis; foundation; root / cause / ingredient; material / (somebody's) side; (somebody's) location / original cost (or capital, principal, etc.) / (plant) root; (tree) trunk / first section of a waka / counter for blades of grass, tree trunks, etc., and for falcons (in falconry) / handle (chopsticks, brush, etc.); grip
間【あいだ】 space (between); gap; interval; distance / time (between); pause; break / span (temporal or spatial); stretch; period (while) / relationship (between, among) / members (within, among) / due to; because of
関【せき】 barrier; gate / seki (in go); mutual life
唐【から】 China (sometimes also used in ref. to Korea or other foreign countries)
観【かん】 look; appearance / spectacle; sight / observation meditation / outlook on ...; view of ...
株【かぶ】 stock; share / stump / root; rootstock / strain (of bacteria, etc.) / tradeable rank; goodwill / one's forte
官【かん】 government service; the bureaucracy
幹【みき】 (tree) trunk; (arrow) shaft; (tool) handle; backbone; base
感【かん】 feeling; sensation; emotion; admiration; impression / interjection
輪【わ】 ring; circle; loop / hoop / wheel / circle (e.g. of friends)
監【げん】 special Nara-period administrative division for areas containing a detached palace (Yoshino and Izumi) / secretary; third highest-ranking officials in the Dazaifu
改【かい】 revision
海【うみ】 sea; ocean; waters
境【さかい】 border; boundary / turning point; watershed / area; region; spot; space; environment / psychological state; mental state / cognitive object; something perceptible by the sense organs or mind
外【そと】 outside; exterior / open air / other place
害【がい】 injury; harm; evil influence; damage
各々【おのおの】 each / you (plural)
格【かく】 status; position; rank / method; way; style / rule; regulation; law / grammatical case / figure (syllogism)
核【かく】 pit (of a fruit); stone / core / nucleus; nuclear / nuclear weaponry / kernel
確か【たしか】 sure; certain; positive; definite / reliable; trustworthy; safe; sound; firm; accurate; correct; exact / If I'm not mistaken; If I remember correctly; If I remember rightly
革【かわ】 leather
学【がく】 learning; scholarship; study; erudition; knowledge; education / study of ...; -ology; -ics
楽【らく】 comfort; ease / raku pottery
額【がく】 picture (framed) / amount or sum (of money)
割【わり】 rate; ratio; proportion; percentage / profit / assignment / 10%; unit of ten percent / match; schedule of matches / diluted with (of drinks); mixed with
活【かつ】 living; life / judo art of resuscitation / action; activity
運【うん】 fortune; luck
影【かげ】 shadow; silhouette; figure; shape / reflection; image / ominous sign / light (stars, moon) / trace; shadow (of one's former self)
花房【はなぶさ】 calyx; corolla
円【えん】 yen; Japanese monetary unit / circle
応【おう】 agreement; affirmative / aye; yes; OK; okay; yeah; all right
横【よこ】 horizontal (as opposed to vertical); lying down / side-to-side (as opposed to front-to-back); width; breadth / side (of a box, etc.) / beside; aside; next to / unconnected
丘【おか】 hill; height; knoll; rising ground / bonus points awarded to the winner at the end of a game
音【おと】 sound; noise; report / note / fame / Chinese-derived character reading
下【した】 below; down; under; younger (e.g. daughter) / bottom / beneath; underneath / just after; right after / inferiority; one's inferior (i.e. one's junior) / trade-in / preliminary; preparatory
化【か】 action of making something; -ification
何【なに】 what / how many / large number of; many / you-know-what; that / whatsit; what's the expression; what do you call them / what? / hey!
値【あたい】 price; cost / value; worth; merit / value
加【か】 addition; increase / Canada
可【か】 passable; acceptable; tolerable; fair
家【いえ】 house; residence; dwelling / family; household / lineage; family name
果【か】 phala (attained state, result) / enlightenment (as the fruits of one's Buddhist practice) / fruit / counter for pieces of fruit
課【か】 lesson / section (in an organization); division; department / counter for lessons and chapters (of a book)
過【か】 surplus- (attaches to start of Sino-Japanese words); excess-; over- / per- (chemical with more of a certain element than found in other compounds of the same constituents)
画【かく】 stroke (of a kanji, etc.)
会【かい】 meeting; assembly; party / association; club
解【かい】 solution (of equation)
回【かい】 counter for occurrences / a time; an instance / inning (baseball); round; game / episode; chapter; instalment / Hui (people) / Islam
安【やす】 cheap / rash; thoughtless; careless; indiscreet; frivolous
机【つくえ】 desk
位【くらい】 throne; crown; (nobleman's) seat / government position; court rank / social standing; rank; class; echelon; rung / grade (of quality, etc.); level; tier; rank / digit (e.g. the tens, the hundreds, etc.); place / degree; extent; amount
意【い】 feelings; thoughts / meaning
医【い】 medicine; the healing art; healing; curing; doctor
井【い】 well
域【いき】 region; limits; stage; level
一つ【ひとつ】 one / for one thing / only / (not) even / just (e.g. "just try it")
員【いん】 member
院【いん】 house of parliament (congress, diet, etc.) / graduate school; postgraduate school / institution (often medical); institutional building; government office / sub-temple; minor temple building; temple; cloister / imperial palace / title bestowed on empresses, princesses, etc. / former (esp. of emperors, daimyos, etc.); late