30 beginner kanji for your N5 study: stories, words, and practice
Gomademy8 min readOne mark for one. Two marks for two. A small mountain with three peaks. Your first kanji can begin with shapes that give you something to hold onto.
This guide brings together 30 beginner characters, an optional memory story for each, and one word reading to practise. It is a manageable starting set for someone beginning N5 study.
It is not an official or complete N5 kanji list. The JLPT does not publish an exhaustive vocabulary, kanji, and grammar list for the current test, as its official FAQ explains. Treat this selection as a study aid, not a prediction of exam questions or a promise that learning it is enough to pass.
Try this first: Begin with 一・二・三. Cover the meanings and try recalling them, then check the word readings in the table. Add another character when those three feel manageable.
Learn a character, then learn a word
A kanji can appear in different words with different readings. Instead of collecting every reading at once, learn one useful word accurately. Add other words as you meet them.
For example, 人 means person. The word 人 is read ひと (hito). In 日本人, meaning a Japanese person, 人 is read じん (jin), and the whole word is にほんじん (nihonjin).
A story can help recall the meaning. It cannot tell you every reading. The stories below are invented memory aids; they are not accounts of how the characters historically developed.
Twelve number characters
Cover the last column and see whether the meaning comes back. Then uncover the word and practise its reading. The romaji is a temporary support; try the kana reading first.
Scroll sideways to read all table columns. You can also focus the table and use the arrow keys.
| Kanji | Meaning here | A little story | Word example and reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| 一 | one | One brush rests on an otherwise empty table. | 一 — いち (ichi), one |
| 二 | two | Two brushes sit side by side on the table. | 二 — に (ni), two |
| 三 | three | Add a third brush to finish the small set. | 三 — さん (san), three |
| 四 | four | Imagine four marbles packed inside a square tray. | 四 — よん (yon), four |
| 五 | five | Picture a tiny frame with a shelf for five cups. | 五 — ご (go), five |
| 六 | six | A little roof shelters six imaginary raindrops. | 六 — ろく (roku), six |
| 七 | seven | A bent ribbon hangs from peg number seven. | 七 — なな (nana), seven |
| 八 | eight | Two paths spread toward eight distant villages. | 八 — はち (hachi), eight |
| 九 | nine | A hooked path ends at house number nine. | 九 — きゅう (kyū), nine |
| 十 | ten | Two paths cross at the tenth stop on a walk. | 十 — じゅう (jū), ten |
| 百 | hundred | Imagine a little box stacked with a hundred notes. | 百 — ひゃく (hyaku), hundred |
| 千 | thousand | A slanted banner marks the thousandth step. | 千 — せん (sen), thousand |
Some numbers have alternative readings: 四 can be し (shi), 七 can be しち (shichi), and 九 can be く (ku) in particular words and expressions. Learn those expressions as whole units. Do not mechanically replace a reading in a date or a counter phrase.
The story for 四 does not claim that there are four visible marbles in the character. You supply the scene; the written form stays exactly as it is.
Seven characters you meet in weekdays
These characters are useful places to connect a meaning with a whole word. In the examples, 曜日 is read ようび (yōbi). The weekday words give you a recurring place to practise the first character's reading.
Scroll sideways to read all table columns. You can also focus the table and use the arrow keys.
| Kanji | Meaning here | A little story | Word example and reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| 日 | sun; day | A small window frames the sun halfway across the sky. | 日曜日 — にちようび (nichiyōbi), Sunday |
| 月 | moon; month | A narrow window holds two soft strips of moonlight. | 月曜日 — げつようび (getsuyōbi), Monday |
| 火 | fire | A central flame sends sparks to either side. | 火曜日 — かようび (kayōbi), Tuesday |
| 水 | water | A splash throws drops out from its center. | 水曜日 — すいようび (suiyōbi), Wednesday |
| 木 | tree | A trunk grows branches and spreads its roots. | 木曜日 — もくようび (mokuyōbi), Thursday |
| 金 | gold; money | A roof shelters a small treasure with shining flecks. | 金曜日 — きんようび (kin'yōbi), Friday |
| 土 | soil; earth | A seedling rises through two layers of earth. | 土曜日 — どようび (doyōbi), Saturday |
The reading of 金 in 金曜日 is きん. In お金 (okane, money), the kanji contributes the reading かね. Use each complete word as your prompt rather than expecting one fixed sound per character.
An apostrophe in kin'yōbi separates the n from the following y. The long ō represents the long vowel in よう. Listen to a Japanese model instead of relying only on Latin letters.
Eleven characters for people, places, and size
Scroll sideways to read all table columns. You can also focus the table and use the arrow keys.
| Kanji | Meaning here | A little story | Word example and reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| 人 | person | Two long legs balance a person taking a step. | 人 — ひと (hito), person |
| 口 | mouth | A little square mouth opens in surprise. | 口 — くち (kuchi), mouth |
| 目 | eye | A tall frame holds an eye looking through its middle. | 目 — め (me), eye |
| 耳 | ear | Picture an ear with tiny shelves catching sounds. | 耳 — みみ (mimi), ear |
| 手 | hand | A wrist holds a small fan of fingers. | 手 — て (te), hand |
| 足 | foot; leg | A small box balances above a stepping leg. | 足 — あし (ashi), foot or leg |
| 山 | mountain | Three peaks rise from the ground. | 山 — やま (yama), mountain |
| 川 | river | Three streams flow downhill side by side. | 川 — かわ (kawa), river |
| 田 | rice field | Four plots share the same little field. | 田んぼ — たんぼ (tanbo), rice field |
| 大 | big | A person spreads both arms to show something enormous. | 大きい — おおきい (ōkii), big |
| 小 | small | A tiny center has two smaller dots beside it. | 小さい — ちいさい (chiisai), small |
In 大きい and 小さい, the hiragana endings are part of the written words. Learn the complete spelling and reading together. A card showing only 大 does not contain everything needed to spell 大きい.
A small plan for this set
Begin with the numbers 一 to 五. Picture each story, check the written shape, and say the example reading. Hide the answers and try again in a different order.
At the next session, review those five before deciding whether to add more. Continue in small groups through the remaining numbers, weekdays, and people/place characters. There is no need to add a new group every day if the previous group still feels unfamiliar.
For each word, make two checks:
- Meaning: can you explain it when you see the written word?
- Reading: can you say the word, including any hiragana endings?
Then encounter it in something larger: a calendar for weekdays, a simple phrase, or a short sentence. Keep listening alongside reading.
Try reading in context
Read these aloud, then check the readings and translations.
- 山に行きます。
- 手を洗います。
- 月曜日です。
Readings: やまにいきます。 / てをあらいます。 / げつようびです。
Meanings: “I go to the mountains” or “I will go to the mountains.” / “I wash my hands” or “I will wash my hands.” / “It is Monday.”
The polite nonpast forms 行きます and 洗います can describe routines or future actions. に marks the destination in the first sentence; を, pronounced o, marks the object in the second. 山 does not specify singular or plural here. Japanese often leaves the subject unstated. These English translations use “I” as one possible context, rather than a word visibly written in each Japanese sentence.
A six-question recall check
- Which means mountain: 山 or 川?
- Read 人 as the standalone word meaning person.
- Read 月曜日.
- Which is big: 大きい or 小さい?
- Give the reading and meaning of 田んぼ.
- Does knowing these 30 characters establish that you are ready for N5?
Answers: 1. 山; 2. ひと (hito); 3. げつようび (getsuyōbi), Monday; 4. 大きい (ōkii); 5. たんぼ (tanbo), rice field; 6. no—this is one starter set within broader vocabulary, grammar, reading, and listening study.
Put the list back into Japanese
The official N5 item descriptions include reading words written in kanji and understanding language in context, alongside other skills. A list can help organize practice, but it cannot replace the rest of that work.
Choose three words from this page. Read them, recall their meanings, and find a short example you understand. For a review routine, continue with our spaced repetition guide. If the kana readings still slow you down, return to the hiragana starter plan.
Sources and scope
The JLPT FAQ explains why the current test does not publish exhaustive content specifications. The official N5 item purposes describe the skills assessed. The 30-character selection, stories, and practice sequence are original editorial choices; JLPT does not endorse this set. Readings shown are word-specific examples, not complete dictionaries of each character's readings.