JLPT N5 Kanji: All 103 Kanji by Theme, with Readings and the Words That Use Them
All 103 JLPT N5 kanji by theme, with on and kun readings, the N5 words that use each one, special readings, look-alikes and how kanji are tested.
This guide groups all 103 JLPT N5 kanji by theme, shows the readings you need at N5 and links each kanji to the N5 words that use it. It also explains how kanji are tested, the special readings that catch beginners, and the look-alike kanji the orthography questions use as traps.
- How many kanji are on the N5?
- How kanji are tested
- On and kun readings in two minutes
- All 103 N5 kanji by theme
- Special readings to learn as whole words
- Sound changes: がっこう, いっぽん, さんびゃく
- Look-alike kanji
- How to learn the N5 kanji
- Common mistakes
How many kanji are on the N5?
There is no official N5 kanji list. Until 2009 the JLPT published “Test Content Specifications” with kanji, vocabulary and grammar lists; when the test was revised in 2010, it stopped (JLPT FAQ). Every N5 kanji list is therefore an estimate, and lists from different sites disagree by a handful of kanji.
Nihongomachi’s list has 103 kanji, all on the N5 kanji page, each with its own page of readings, stroke count and the N5 words that use it. In our October 2026 data audit, 15 kanji that some lists put at N5 were judged to be above it and kept aside for N4: 字, 田, 海, 林, 森, 雪, 風, 赤, 青, 黒, 兄, 弟, 姉, 妹 and 帰. The words that use them are still on the N5 vocabulary list (漢字, 帰る, 海); learn those words by sound and kana.
How kanji are tested
You never write anything on the JLPT: every question is multiple choice. What N5 checks is whether you can read kanji in words. Two question types in the 20-minute Language Knowledge (Vocabulary) section test it directly (JLPT test sections):
| Question type | What you do | Practise it |
|---|---|---|
| Kanji reading | Choose the hiragana reading of an underlined word written in kanji | Kanji reading |
| Orthography | Choose how an underlined word in hiragana is written in kanji or katakana | Orthography |
A kanji reading question underlines a word like 来週 and offers near-miss readings: らいしゅう, らいしゅ, らいしょう, れいしゅう. Only らいしゅう (raishuu, next week) is right. An orthography question works the other way: it underlines ごご and offers 午後, 千後, 午語 and 五後. The wrong options swap in a kanji that looks similar (千 for 午) or has the same sound (語 and 五 for ご), which is why the look-alike kanji below matter.
Kanji also appear in every other section: in grammar questions, reading passages and the printed options for some listening questions. On N5 material, words are usually written in kanji only when every kanji in them is an N5 kanji; other words appear in kana.
On and kun readings in two minutes
Most kanji have two kinds of reading:
- Kun reading (訓読み, kun’yomi): the native Japanese word. It is usually used when the kanji stands alone or has hiragana after it: 山 (やま, yama, mountain), 食べる (たべる, taberu, to eat).
- On reading (音読み, on’yomi): the reading that came from Chinese. It is usually used in words made of two or more kanji: 学生 (がくせい, gakusei, student), 電車 (でんしゃ, densha, train).
In the tables, on readings are in katakana and kun readings in hiragana, with the part written in hiragana after the kanji in brackets: 食 is た(べる), so the word is 食べる. The readings come from our kanji data. A few, such as ち for 千 or スイ for 出, are rare and not needed at N5; the N5 words column shows the readings that matter.
One kanji can have several readings, and the word decides which one. 人 is ひと on its own (人, person), じん after a country (日本人, nihonjin, Japanese person) and にん after a number of three or more (三人, さんにん, sannin, three people). This is why it pays to learn kanji through words rather than reading lists.
All 103 N5 kanji by theme
Every kanji links to its page, and every word links to its word page with an example sentence and audio. The words shown are the most useful N5 words for each kanji; the kanji page lists all of them.
Numbers and money
Numbers are the first kanji to learn: they are in prices, dates, times and counters, and they show up in listening and reading questions all the time. The numbers 4, 7 and 9 have two readings each; see special readings.
| Kanji | Meaning | On reading | Kun reading | N5 words |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 一 | one | イチ・イツ | ひと(つ) | 一 (いち, One (1)), 一つ (ひとつ, One thing) |
| 二 | two | ニ | ふた(つ) | 二 (に, Two (2)), 二つ (ふたつ, Two things) |
| 三 | three | サン | みっ(つ) | 三 (さん, Three (3)), 三つ (みっつ, Three things) |
| 四 | four | シ | よっ(つ)・よ | 四 (よん, Four (4)), 四つ (よっつ, Four things) |
| 五 | five | ゴ | いつ(つ) | 五 (ご, Five (5)), 五つ (いつつ, Five things) |
| 六 | six | ロク | むっ(つ) | 六 (ろく, Six (6)), 六つ (むっつ, Six things) |
| 七 | seven | シチ | なな(つ) | 七 (なな, Seven (7)), 七つ (ななつ, Seven things) |
| 八 | eight | ハチ | やっ(つ) | 八 (はち, Eight (8)), 八つ (やっつ, Eight things) |
| 九 | nine | ク・キュウ | ここの(つ) | 九 (きゅう, Nine (9)), 九つ (ここのつ, Nine things) |
| 十 | ten | ジュウ | とお | 十 (じゅう, Ten (10)), 十 (とお, Ten things) |
| 百 | hundred | ヒャク | — | 百 (ひゃく, Hundred (100)) |
| 千 | thousand | セン | ち | 千 (せん, Thousand (1,000)) |
| 万 | ten thousand | マン・バン | — | 万 (まん, Ten thousand (10,000)) |
| 円 | yen / circle | エン | まる(い) | 〜円 (えん, ~ yen) |
The days of the week
The seven day kanji are 日 (sun), 月 (moon) and the five elements: fire, water, wood, gold (metal) and earth. Add よう日 and you have the days: 月曜日 (Monday), 火曜日, 水曜日, 木曜日, 金曜日, 土曜日 and 日曜日 (Sunday). 曜 is not an N5 kanji, so N5 material usually writes 月よう日, 火よう日 and so on.
| Kanji | Meaning | On reading | Kun reading | N5 words |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 月 | month / moon | ゲツ・ガツ | つき | 一月 (いちがつ, January), 今月 (こんげつ, This month) |
| 火 | fire | カ | ひ | 火曜日 (かようび, Tuesday) |
| 水 | water | スイ | みず | 水 (みず, Water) |
| 木 | tree / wood | モク・ボク | き | 木 (き, Tree) |
| 金 | gold / money | キン・コン | かね | お金 (おかね, Money) |
| 土 | earth / soil | ド・ト | つち | 土曜日 (どようび, Saturday) |
| 日 | day / sun | ニチ・ジツ | ひ・か | 今日 (きょう, Today), 毎日 (まいにち, Every day) |
Time words
These combine with the numbers into the time expressions that schedule questions are built on: 午前 and 午後 (a.m. and p.m.), 今週, 毎日, 三時半 (さんじはん, sanji han, half past three).
| Kanji | Meaning | On reading | Kun reading | N5 words |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 年 | year | ネン | とし | 年 (とし, Year), 今年 (ことし, This year) |
| 時 | time / hour | ジ | とき | 時間 (じかん, Time (duration)), 〜時 (じ, ~ o’clock) |
| 分 | minute / part | フン・ブン | わ(かる) | 半分 (はんぶん, Half), 〜分 (ふん, ~ minutes) |
| 今 | now / present | コン・キン | いま | 今 (いま, Now), 今日 (きょう, Today) |
| 週 | week | シュウ | — | 今週 (こんしゅう, This week), 来週 (らいしゅう, Next week) |
| 毎 | every | マイ | — | 毎日 (まいにち, Every day), 毎週 (まいしゅう, Every week) |
| 午 | noon | ゴ | — | 午前 (ごぜん, AM), 午後 (ごご, PM) |
| 前 | before / front | ゼン | まえ | 前 (まえ, Front), 午前 (ごぜん, AM) |
| 後 | after / behind | ゴ・コウ | あと・うし(ろ) | 後 (あと, After), 午後 (ごご, PM) |
| 半 | half | ハン | なか(ば) | 半 (はん, Half (past, e.g. 3:30)), 半分 (はんぶん, Half) |
| 間 | interval / between | カン・ケン | あいだ・ま | 時間 (じかん, Time (duration)), 〜週間 (しゅうかん, ~ weeks (duration)) |
Position and direction
Position words come up in “where is it?” questions with あります and います: つくえの上 (on the desk), はこの中 (in the box), 駅の右 (to the right of the station). 前 and 後 are also position words, as in 駅の前 (in front of the station).
| Kanji | Meaning | On reading | Kun reading | N5 words |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 上 | up / above | ジョウ | うえ・あ(げる) | 上 (うえ, Above), 上手 (じょうず, Skilled) |
| 下 | down / below | カ・ゲ | した・さ(げる) | 下 (した, Under), 下手 (へた, Unskilled) |
| 中 | middle / inside | チュウ | なか | 中 (なか, Inside), 〜中 (じゅう, Throughout ~) |
| 外 | outside | ガイ | そと | 外 (そと, Outside), 外国 (がいこく, Foreign country) |
| 左 | left | サ | ひだり | 左 (ひだり, Left) |
| 右 | right | ウ・ユウ | みぎ | 右 (みぎ, Right) |
| 東 | east | トウ | ひがし | 東 (ひがし, East) |
| 西 | west | セイ・サイ | にし | 西 (にし, West) |
| 南 | south | ナン | みなみ | 南 (みなみ, South) |
| 北 | north | ホク | きた | 北 (きた, North) |
People and family
| Kanji | Meaning | On reading | Kun reading | N5 words |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 人 | person | ジン・ニン | ひと | 人 (ひと, Person), 一人 (ひとり, One person) |
| 子 | child | シ・ス | こ | 男の子 (おとこのこ, Boy), 女の子 (おんなのこ, Girl) |
| 男 | male / man | ダン・ナン | おとこ | 男 (おとこ, Man), 男の子 (おとこのこ, Boy) |
| 女 | female / woman | ジョ・ニョ | おんな | 女 (おんな, Woman), 女の子 (おんなのこ, Girl) |
| 父 | father | フ | ちち | 父 (ちち, Father (my)), お父さん (おとうさん, Father (someone’s)) |
| 母 | mother | ボ | はは | 母 (はは, Mother (my)), お母さん (おかあさん, Mother (someone’s)) |
| 友 | friend | ユウ | とも | 友達 (ともだち, Friend) |
| 生 | life / birth | セイ・ショウ | い(きる)・う(まれる) | 先生 (せんせい, Teacher), 学生 (がくせい, Student) |
| 先 | ahead / first | セン | さき | 先 (さき, Ahead), 先生 (せんせい, Teacher) |
| 名 | name / famous | メイ・ミョウ | な | 名前 (なまえ, Name) |
The body
| Kanji | Meaning | On reading | Kun reading | N5 words |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 口 | mouth / opening | コウ | くち | 口 (くち, Mouth), 入口 (いりぐち, Entrance) |
| 目 | eye | モク | め | 目 (め, Eye) |
| 耳 | ear | — | みみ | 耳 (みみ, Ear) |
| 手 | hand | シュ | て | 手 (て, Hand), 上手 (じょうず, Skilled) |
| 足 | foot / leg / enough | ソク | あし・た(りる) | 足 (あし, Leg) |
Nature, weather and animals
| Kanji | Meaning | On reading | Kun reading | N5 words |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 山 | mountain | サン | やま | 山 (やま, Mountain) |
| 川 | river | セン | かわ | 川 (かわ, River) |
| 空 | sky / empty | クウ | そら・から | 空 (そら, Sky) |
| 天 | heaven / sky | テン | — | 天気 (てんき, Weather), 天ぷら (てんぷら, Tempura) |
| 気 | energy / spirit | キ・ケ | — | 天気 (てんき, Weather), 電気 (でんき, Light) |
| 花 | flower | カ | はな | 花 (はな, Flower) |
| 雨 | rain | ウ | あめ・あま | 雨 (あめ, Rain) |
| 魚 | fish | ギョ | さかな | 魚 (さかな, Fish) |
Size, price and other descriptions
| Kanji | Meaning | On reading | Kun reading | N5 words |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 大 | big | ダイ・タイ | おお(きい) | 大学 (だいがく, University), 大人 (おとな, Adult) |
| 小 | small | ショウ | ちい(さい) | 小さい (ちいさい, Small), 小さな (ちいさな, Small) |
| 高 | high / expensive | コウ | たか(い) | 高い (たかい, High) |
| 安 | cheap / safe | アン | やす(い) | 安い (やすい, Cheap) |
| 長 | long | チョウ | なが(い) | 長い (ながい, Long) |
| 新 | new | シン | あたら(しい) | 新聞 (しんぶん, Newspaper), 新しい (あたらしい, New) |
| 古 | old | コ | ふる(い) | 古い (ふるい, Old) |
| 多 | many / much | タ | おお(い) | 多い (おおい, Many) |
| 少 | few / little | ショウ | すく(ない) | 少し (すこし, A little), 少ない (すくない, Few) |
| 白 | white | ハク・ビャク | しろ | 白 (しろ, White), 白い (しろい, White) |
Places, school and things
| Kanji | Meaning | On reading | Kun reading | N5 words |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 学 | study / learn | ガク | まな(ぶ) | 学生 (がくせい, Student), 学校 (がっこう, School) |
| 校 | school | コウ | — | 学校 (がっこう, School) |
| 国 | country | コク | くに | 国 (くに, Country), 外国 (がいこく, Foreign country) |
| 語 | language / word | ゴ | かた(る) | 〜語 (ご, ~ language (e.g. 英語)), 日本語 (にほんご, Japanese language) |
| 本 | book / origin | ホン | もと | 本 (ほん, Book), 〜本 (ほん, Counter for long, thin things) |
| 会 | meet / meeting | カイ | あ(う) | 会う (あう, To meet), 会社 (かいしゃ, Company) |
| 社 | company / shrine | シャ | — | 会社 (かいしゃ, Company) |
| 店 | shop / store | テン | みせ | 店 (みせ, Store) |
| 駅 | station | エキ | — | 駅 (えき, Train station) |
| 電 | electricity | デン | — | 電話 (でんわ, Telephone), 電車 (でんしゃ, Train) |
| 車 | car / vehicle | シャ | くるま | 車 (くるま, Car), 電車 (でんしゃ, Train) |
| 道 | road / way | ドウ | みち | 道 (みち, Road) |
Verbs
The verb kanji are almost always followed by hiragana, and the hiragana tells you the form: 食べます, 食べた, 食べない all use た for 食. The same kanji also turn up in nouns: 食べ物 (food), 飲み物 (drink), 買い物 (shopping), 休み (holiday).
| Kanji | Meaning | On reading | Kun reading | N5 words |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 行 | go | コウ・ギョウ | い(く) | 行く (いく, To go) |
| 来 | come | ライ | く(る) | 来る (くる, To come), 来年 (らいねん, Next year) |
| 入 | enter | ニュウ | い(る)・はい(る) | 入口 (いりぐち, Entrance), 入る (はいる, To enter) |
| 出 | exit / go out | シュツ・スイ | で(る) | 出口 (でぐち, Exit), 出る (でる, To exit) |
| 立 | stand | リツ | た(つ)・た(てる) | 立つ (たつ, To stand (up)) |
| 休 | rest / day off | キュウ | やす(む) | 休む (やすむ, To rest), 休み (やすみ, Holiday) |
| 見 | see / look | ケン | み(る) | 見る (みる, To see), 見せる (みせる, To show) |
| 聞 | listen / hear | ブン・モン | き(く) | 聞く (きく, To listen), 新聞 (しんぶん, Newspaper) |
| 言 | say / word | ゲン・ゴン | い(う)・こと | 言う (いう, To say) |
| 話 | speak / talk | ワ | はな(す) | 話 (はなし, Talk), 話す (はなす, To speak) |
| 読 | read | ドク | よ(む) | 読む (よむ, To read) |
| 書 | write | ショ | か(く) | 書く (かく, To write) |
| 食 | eat / food | ショク | た(べる) | 食べる (たべる, To eat) |
| 飲 | drink | イン | の(む) | 飲む (のむ, To drink) |
| 買 | buy | バイ | か(う) | 買う (かう, To buy) |
The question word
| Kanji | Meaning | On reading | Kun reading | N5 words |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 何 | what | — | なに・なん | 何 (なに, What), 何〜 (なん, What) |
Special readings to learn as whole words
Some common words do not follow the readings of their kanji at all. You cannot work them out, so learn each one as a whole word. All of these are on the N5 list and can turn up in kanji reading questions.
| Word | Reading | Meaning | Why it is special |
|---|---|---|---|
| 今日 | きょう | today | Not こんにち (that reading is in こんにちは) |
| 今年 | ことし | this year | Not こんねん |
| 一人 | ひとり | one person, alone | Not いちにん; 3 people and up are regular: さんにん |
| 二人 | ふたり | two people | Not ににん |
| 大人 | おとな | adult | Not だいにん |
| 上手 | じょうず | good at | Not うえて |
| 下手 | へた | bad at | Not したて |
| 一日 | ついたち | the 1st of the month | 一日 read いちにち means one day |
| 二十日 | はつか | the 20th of the month | Not にじゅうにち |
| 四日 | よっか | the 4th, four days | Not よんにち |
| 八日 | ようか | the 8th, eight days | Easy to confuse with よっか in listening |
The numbers 4, 7 and 9 each have two readings, and the word decides which: よん and し, なな and しち, きゅう and く. Clock times use よじ (4:00), しちじ (7:00) and くじ (9:00); the months use しがつ, しちがつ and くがつ. These are common traps in both kanji reading and listening questions.
Sound changes: がっこう, いっぽん, さんびゃく
When on readings join, the sounds often change at the join. You do not need rules for these at N5, but you do need to recognise the results, because the wrong options in kanji reading questions are often the unchanged forms.
- A small っ appears: 学 (がく) + 校 (こう) becomes 学校 (がっこう, gakkou), not がくこう. Numbers do this with counters too, and the h sound becomes p: 一本 (いっぽん), 六百 (ろっぴゃく), 八百 (はっぴゃく).
- The second sound gets voiced: 三 + 百 is さんびゃく (sanbyaku), 三 + 千 is さんぜん (sanzen), 三本 is さんぼん (sanbon).
- Long vowels and small ゃ ゅ ょ carry meaning: 会社 is かいしゃ, not かいしや, and 〜週間 is しゅうかん, not しゅかん. Kanji reading questions very often hinge on one of these.
Look-alike kanji
Orthography questions use similar-looking kanji as wrong answers, so learn these groups side by side. Every kanji here is an N5 kanji.
| Group | Tell them apart |
|---|---|
| 人 入 八 | In 人 (person) the left stroke starts at the top and the right one joins it lower down; in 入 (enter) it is the right stroke that starts at the top. In 八 (eight) the two strokes do not touch. |
| 木 本 休 | 本 (book) is 木 (tree) with a short line across the lower part of the trunk. 休 (rest) is a person 亻 leaning against a tree. |
| 日 目 白 百 | 日 has one line inside, 目 (eye) has two. 白 (white) is 日 with a stroke on top, and 百 (hundred) is 白 with a line over it. |
| 千 午 | 千 (thousand) has one cross line; 午 (noon) has two. |
| 土 上 | 土 (earth) is a cross standing on a longer base line. 上 (up) has a vertical line with a short stroke out to the right, on the same long base. |
| 左 右 | Both start with the same shape. 左 (left) has 工 underneath; 右 (right) has 口. |
| 間 聞 | Both are inside the gate 門. 間 (between) has 日 inside; 聞 (listen) has an ear, 耳. |
| 話 語 読 | All three have the “speech” part 言 on the left. Learn them in their words: 話す, 日本語, 読む. |
| 大 天 | 天 (heaven, sky) is 大 (big) with a line on top. At N5 it appears in 天気 (weather). |
How to learn the N5 kanji
- Learn kanji with their words. For each kanji, learn one or two of the words in the tables above, with their readings. That is exactly what kanji reading and orthography questions check, and it gives you the right reading for free.
- Follow the lessons. The 25 lessons introduce the 103 kanji alongside the words and grammar that use them, so you meet each kanji in sentences you can read.
- Review with spaced repetition. The study app puts each new kanji into your reviews and brings it back just before you would forget it. Sign in with Google to use it and keep your progress on every device.
- Practise in exam format. Once you are a few lessons in, do a 10-question set of kanji reading or orthography most days.
- Write a few if it helps you, but do not spend weeks on it. Writing a kanji by hand can make it stick, and it helps you notice details like the extra line in 本. It is not tested at N5, so recognition comes first.
For how the kanji fit into the wider word list, see the JLPT N5 vocabulary list. For a full timetable, see the JLPT N5 study plan.
Common mistakes
Common mistakes: Learning readings as lists instead of in words, then not knowing which reading a word uses. Ignoring long vowels and small っ (がっこう, しゅうかん), which is exactly where kanji reading questions set their traps. Mixing up look-alike pairs such as 日 and 目, 千 and 午, or 間 and 聞. Spending weeks on handwriting and stroke order when the test only asks you to recognise kanji. Reading 今日 as こんにち, or 一人 as いちにん.
Kanji list and readings from Nihongomachi’s N5 data (readings checked against KANJIDIC, EDRDG). Test details are from the official JLPT website (FAQ, test sections).
Frequently asked questions
How many kanji do I need for the JLPT N5?
There is no official number. The JLPT stopped publishing kanji lists when the test was revised in 2010. Nihongomachi's N5 list has 103 kanji, which covers what N5 lists commonly include. Lists from other sites differ by a handful of kanji.
Do I need to write kanji for the JLPT N5?
No. The JLPT is multiple choice, so you never write anything by hand. You need to recognise kanji: read them in words (kanji reading questions) and pick the right written form of a word (orthography questions).
Should I learn on'yomi and kun'yomi separately?
Not as lists. Learn each kanji through the N5 words that use it, and the readings come with the words: 人 is ひと on its own, じん in 日本人 and にん when counting three or more people (三人, さんにん). Reading lists out of context is slow and does not show you which reading a word uses.
Which N5 kanji should I learn first?
Start with the numbers 一 to 十 plus 百, 千, 万 and 円, then the days of the week (月 火 水 木 金 土 日) and the time words (年, 時, 分, 今, 週, 毎, 午, 前, 後, 半). They appear in almost every listening and reading question about schedules, prices and dates.
How long does it take to learn the 103 N5 kanji?
The 25 Nihongomachi lessons spread the 103 kanji over the course alongside the words that use them. At the default of 10 new items a day (words and kanji together), the lessons take about 13 weeks, with daily reviews on top.