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Learn Kanji Quickly - Level 4
by Joel R. Voss aka. Javantea
Feb 20, 2004
Learning to read Kanji is not as difficult as it is made out to be. You just need a place to start and a daily habit of reading them. Here's a good place to start. This is the beginner level. It is beginner because it is easy and short.
Learn Days of the Week and Objects
| 曜日 | youbi | Day | Object |
|---|---|---|---|
| 日 | nichi | Sunday | Sun |
| 月 | getsu | Monday | Moon |
| 火 | ka | Tuesday | Fire |
| 水 | sui | Wednesday | Water |
| 木 | moku | Thursday | Tree |
| 金 | kin | Friday | Gold |
| 土 | do | Saturday | Earth |
Learn Numbers and Months
| 月 | gatsu | Number | Month |
|---|---|---|---|
| 一 | ichi | 1 | January |
| 二 | ni | 2 | February |
| 三 | san | 3 | March |
| 四 | shi | 4 | April |
| 五 | go | 5 | May |
| 六 | roku | 6 | June |
| 七 | shichi | 7 | July |
| 八 | hachi | 8 | August |
| 九 | kyuu | 9 | September |
| 十 | juu | 10 | October |
| 十一 | juu ichi | 11 | November |
| 十二 | juu ni | 12 | December |
Learn People
| 人 | hito, nin | person |
|---|---|---|
| 父 | chichi, tou | father |
| 母 | haha, kaa | mother |
| 女 | onna | woman |
| 男 | otoko | man |
| 友 | tomo, yuu | friend |
| 子 | ko | child |
Learn Directions
| kanji | hiragana | Direction |
|---|---|---|
| 上 | ue | up |
| 下 | shita | down |
| 左 | hidari | left |
| 右 | migi | right |
| 東 | higashi | east |
| 西 | nishi | west |
| 南 | minami | south |
| 北 | kita | north |
Learn Adjectives
| kanji | hiragana | adjective |
|---|---|---|
| 外 | gai, soto | foreign, outside |
| 高 | taka(i) | tall |
| 小 | chii(sai) | small |
| 中 | naka | center |
| 大 | ou(kii) | big |
| 長 | naga(i) | long |
| 半 | han | half |
| 分 | bun, wa | part, understand |
| 白 | shiro(i) | white |
Learn Nouns
| kanji | hiragana | noun |
|---|---|---|
| 名 | na | name |
| 校 | kou | school |
| 生 | sei, i(kiru) | life |
| 山 | yama | mountain |
| 川 | kawa | river |
| 天 | ten | heaven |
| 雨 | ame | rain |
| 電 | den | electricity |
| 気 | ki, iki | spirit, energy |
| 車 | kuruma | car |
| 国 | kuni | country |
| 円 | en | money |
| 書 | kaku | document |
Learn Verbs
| kanji | hiragana | verb |
|---|---|---|
| 学 | gaku, mana(bu) | learn |
| 話 | hanashi, wa | story |
| 聞 | kiku | listen |
| 食 | taberu | eat |
| 読 | yomu | read |
| 来 | kuru | come |
| 見 | miru | show |
| 行 | iku | go |
| 出 | deru | go, appear, leave |
| 入 | iru, hairu | enter, go in |
Learn Questions
| 何 | nan, nani, ka | What? |
| 何故 | naze | (adv) (uk) why; how; |
| 如何して | doushite | why? |
| 何処 | doko | where? |
| 誰 | dare | who? |
Kanji is said differently depending on its usage. Sun can be nichi and hi (bi). This makes sense because we say mai nichi "everday", and you bi "day". This seperates the two usages for the same concept. Thus hiragana (actual speech) can specify usage and kanji can specify concept.