漢字 Kanji · N5
Kanji here are ordered by usefulness, travel first, not school-grade order and not a textbook list. The question for every character is: how fast does it help you read the world?
Kanji practice on this site is recognition first, checked gently, cards and real words for meeting characters, spotting the ones you've already met inside lessons you can hear, and short recognition quizzes so you can see what has actually stuck.
Characters and compound words always get separate cards. Tap the speaker button on a character card to hear just that character's own reading; a word card like 料理plays the whole word. Turn on furigana to see the readings above the characters. And tap a character card itself to open its detail view: the character up close, with its stroke order drawn out stroke by stroke.
A character card's English line is the character's own meaning when it stands alone as a word. An asterisk (*) marks a character's core meaning, the sense it carries into compound words, rather than a word that stands alone.
See What Stuck
A short recognition check on these characters and the words built from them: readings and meanings, nothing to type, no score. Ten gentle questions.
Phase 1: Signs & Survival
The kanji a visitor to Japan needs to read stations, menus, and prices. Each character stands on its own card; where a character builds a sign word, the word gets its own card right after. Think出 and 口, then出口, "exit," over the station gate.
Numbers & Money
Time
Directions & Places
People & Facilities
Food & Drink
Action Signs
Phase 2: Kanji From the Lessons
Every kanji that appears in lesson vocabulary, grouped by lesson. Each compound word follows the characters that build it, each on its own card, so you can hear 料, then理, then 料理, never all three tangled on one card.
N5 · Lesson 1 · あいさつ Greetings
N5 · Lesson 2 · すうじと じかん Numbers and Time
N5 · Lesson 3 · いえと かぞく Home and Family
N5 · Lesson 4 · たべもの Food Basics
N5 · Lesson 5 · いろと ようす Colors and Describing
N5 · Lesson 6 · おでかけ Going Places
N5 · Lesson 7 · まいにち Every Day
N5 · Lesson 8 · まいにちの あいさつ Set Phrases
N5 · Lesson 9 · もっと あいさつ More Set Phrases
N5 · Lesson 10 · つぎの あいさつ Even More Phrases
N5 · Lesson 11 · であいの あいさつ Polite Phrases
N5 · Lesson 12 · かずと おかね Numbers, Counters and Money
N5 · Lesson 13 · もっと かずと おかね More Numbers, Counters and Money
N5 · Lesson 14 · ものの かず Counting Things
N5 · Lesson 15 · おおきい かず Big Numbers
N5 · Lesson 16 · じかんと ようび Time and the Calendar
N5 · Lesson 17 · しゅうと たんじょうび Weeks and Birthdays
N5 · Lesson 18 · やすみと あき Holidays and Autumn
N5 · Lesson 19 · こんばんと はると なつ Tonight, Spring and Summer
N5 · Lesson 20 · ふゆと ゆっくり Winter, Nice and Slow
N5 · Lesson 21 · 友達と みんな Family and People
N5 · Lesson 22 · かぞくと りょうしん Parents and Family
N5 · Lesson 23 · 男の子と 女の子 More Family
N5 · Lesson 24 · りゅうがくせいと ならぶ The Exchange Student
N5 · Lesson 25 · かぜと くすり A Cold and Medicine
N5 · Lesson 26 · からだと かお Body and Face
N5 · Lesson 27 · めと みみと はな Eyes, Ears and Nose
N5 · Lesson 28 · おにぎりと おちゃと ケーキ Food, Drink and Taste
N5 · Lesson 29 · すしと ラーメンと ジュース Sushi, Ramen and Juice
N5 · Lesson 30 · やさしい やおや The Kind Greengrocer
N5 · Lesson 31 · だいどころと レストラン The Kitchen and the Restaurant
N5 · Lesson 32 · ふくと ぼうしと かさ Clothes, a Hat and an Umbrella
N5 · Lesson 33 · くつと コートと シャツ Shoes, a Coat and a Shirt
N5 · Lesson 34 · カメラと ギターと 電話 A Camera, a Guitar and a Telephone
N5 · Lesson 35 · ラジオと レコードと マッチ A Radio, a Record and Matches
N5 · Lesson 36 · 本と つくえと へや A Book, a Desk and My Room
N5 · Lesson 37 · 入口と 出口と にわ The Entrance, the Exit and the Garden
N5 · Lesson 38 · まどと かいだんと ベッド The Window, the Stairs and the Bed
N5 · Lesson 39 · もんと ふくろ The Gate and the Bag
N5 · Lesson 40 · がっこうと としょかん The School and the Library
N5 · Lesson 41 · ゆうびんきょくと ぎんこう The Post Office and the Bank
N5 · Lesson 42 · はしと ようふく The Bridge and Western Clothes
N5 · Lesson 43 · バスと きっぷ Getting Around
N5 · Lesson 44 · りょこうと うんてん Travel and Driving
N5 · Lesson 45 · やまと うみ Nature and Animals
N5 · Lesson 46 · そらと 木 More Nature and Animals
N5 · Lesson 47 · えんぴつと こたえ School and Study
N5 · Lesson 48 · テストと じしょ More School and Study
N5 · Lesson 49 · かんじと ざっし Even More School and Study
N5 · Lesson 50 · カートと レジ Shopping and Money
N5 · Lesson 51 · しごとと お金 Work and Jobs
N5 · Lesson 52 · えいがと おんがく Free Time and Hobbies
N5 · Lesson 53 · スポーツと ひま More Free Time and Hobbies
N5 · Lesson 54 · みると まつ Moving and Doing
N5 · Lesson 55 · たつと かぶる More Moving and Doing
N5 · Lesson 56 · はくと はしる Even More Moving and Doing
N5 · Lesson 57 · すむと あらう Daily Life Verbs
N5 · Lesson 58 · そうじと わたる More Daily Life Verbs
N5 · Lesson 59 · ほしいと だいすき Feelings
N5 · Lesson 60 · おもいと かるい Describing Words
N5 · Lesson 61 · きれいと くらい More Describing Words
N5 · Lesson 62 · さむいと しずか Even More Describing Words
N5 · Lesson 63 · これと どこ Pointers and Question Words
N5 · Lesson 64 · どれと いつ More Pointers and Question Words
N5 · Lesson 65 · そこと ひだり Even More Pointers and Question Words
N5 · Lesson 66 · いつもと また Adverbs and Connecting Words
N5 · Lesson 67 · そしてと もっと More Adverbs and Connecting Words
N5 · Lesson 68 · バターと よく Even More Adverbs and Connecting Words
N5 · Lesson 69 · いうと もらう More Action Verbs
N5 · Lesson 70 · さくと できる Even More Action Verbs
N5 · Lesson 71 · あかいと あおい Still More Describing Words
N5 · Lesson 72 · デパートと じかん Everyday Words
N5 · Lesson 73 · テレビと はなし More Everyday Words
N5 · Lesson 74 · とうきょうと きょうと Even More Everyday Words
N5 · Lesson 75 · パンやと こえ Still More Everyday Words
N5 · Lesson 76 · セーターと ズボン Yet More Everyday Words
N5 · Lesson 77 · ペンと まっすぐ Everyday Words, Round Six
N5 · Lesson 78 · まんねんひつと お手 Everyday Words, Round Seven
Phase 3: Growing by Level
After signs and lesson kanji, the collection grows along the JLPT-modeled ladder, the rest of N5's ~100, then N4's ~300, still filtered through the same question: does this character earn its place in your day?
Stroke order diagrams: KanjiVG, shared under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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