Kanji - Level 3 - Vocab

Question 1

少し

Answer 1

A little
Kanji: 少 few + し
This word is a single kanji with hiragana attached, though there is no specific clue as to what type of word it is. That means you can usually guess it’s a noun, adverb or na-adjective (in this case it’s a noun / adverb). The meaning of this word is pretty much the same as the kanji, though, making it fairly easy. The kanji meaning for 少 is few, and the meaning of the vocab form is a little or a few.
Reading: すこし
Did you know that this word created an English word you probably already know? Have you ever heard someone say “just a skosh”? That’s 少し! Hopefully you know this English word and therefore know this Japanese word as well.

Question 2

アメリカ人

Answer 2

American person
Kanji: ア + メ + リ + カ + 人 person
The アメリカ part is pretty easy so long as you know katakana. It’s the word for “America.” You know that 人 means “person,” so you can figure out that America + Person = American person.
Readings: あめりかじん, アメリカじん
Often times, when two kanji come together to form a kanji compound (or jukugo), you use the on’yomi readings. This is similar to that, though instead of another kanji it’s a foreign word. This pattern works with almost any country as well. Just add 人 to a country name and you’ve described the people who live there. You’ll see more of these before you’re finished here.
And since 人 has two on’yomi readings, here’s a mnemonic to help you remember which one to use:
Americans absolutely love their jeans (じん), it’s a well-known fact!

Question 3

リンゴ

Answer 3

Apple
Kanji: No kanji (hooray!)
Ringo (リンゴ) just ate your apple! You were about to take a bite, and he grabbed it. What is Ringo doing snatching apples? Surely he can afford his own.
Did you know that Ringo Starr once appeared in a Japanese TV commercial for apple juice? That might help you remember this word, too!
リンゴ is also commonly written in hiragana, and even in kanji, but you’ll probably see it in katakana the most.
Readings: リンゴ, りんご

Question 4

矢

Answer 4

Arrow
Kanji: 矢 arrow
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well.
Reading: や
The reading for this word is the same as the one you learned when learning the kanji.

Question 5

〜台

Answer 5

Big machine counter
Kanji: 台 machine
This counter is used with some kind of machine or device, usually a fairly large one (so nothing itty bitty). Cars are a good example of this. But it can also be used for things like computers, which were once the size of rooms, but are now nice and small. Thanks technology!
Reading: だい
The reading is the same as the one you learned with the kanji. Be sure to omit the 〜 in your answer as it is only a placeholder for a number.

Question 6

イギリス人

Answer 6

British person
Kanji: イ + ギ + リ + ス + 人 person
イギリス means “Great Britain” or “United Kingdom.” So what is a “Great Britain person?” You guessed it — a British person, or Brit.
Readings: いぎりすじん, イギリスじん
Often times, when two kanji come together to form a kanji compound (or jukugo), you use the on’yomi readings. This is similar to that, though instead of another kanji it’s a foreign word. This pattern works with almost any country as well. Just add 人 to a country name and you’ve described the people who live there. You’ll see more of these before you’re finished here.
And since 人 has two on’yomi readings, here’s a mnemonic to help you remember which one to use:
As with all words for nationalities, the 人 here is pronounced じん. All nationalities, including Brits, love jeans (じん)!

Question 7

市

Answer 7

City
Kanji: 市 city
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well.
Reading: し
The reading for this word is the same as the one you learned when learning the kanji.

Question 8

コーヒー

Answer 8

Coffee
Kanji: No kanji (hooray!)
コーヒー is the katakana version of the English word coffee.
Just watch out for the second syllable, which changes to ヒー in Japanese.
Reading: コーヒー

Question 9

牛

Answer 9

Cow
Kanji: 牛 cow
The kanji and the word are the same. This word is a bit broader than cow though, and can also be used to be bull and ox.
Reading: うし
Since this word is made up of a single kanji, it uses the kun’yomi reading. Here’s a mnemonic to help you to remember it:
You’re leading the cows around the field. To get them to move, you yell out “USH, USH, USH!” (うし) because you have a speech impediment and want to say “MUSH MUSH MUSH.” Go ahead and say this out loud, yelling it if you can.

Question 10

戸口

Answer 10

Doorway
Kanji: 戸 door + 口 mouth
Do you remember the words 出口 (exit) and 入り口 (entrance) from previous levels? The 口 can be a doorway of some kind. This word is literally “door mouth” but I bet you can figure out that this actually means doorway.
Reading: とぐち
The reading for this one is mixed. You get the kun’yomi readings for both kanji, even though it’s a combo (jukugo) kanji. Since 戸’s only reading is the kun’yomi reading you should know it. Also, you should know the kun’yomi reading for 口 as well from level 1. That means as long as you remember that this is a kun’yomi fest over here, you should be able to read this word. Also watch out for the rendaku (also known as sequential voicing). That just means the く becomes the voiced ぐ.

Question 11

生ビール

Answer 11

Draft beer
Kanji: 生 life + ビ + ー + ル
You just learned the vocab 生, meaning fresh. Combined with the katakana word for beer makes this draft beer or unpasteurized beer.
Note that while in a lot of countries, “draft beer” refers only to beer that’s drawn from a keg, 生ビール can also refer to unpasteurized canned or bottled beer, giving it a shorter shelf-life, but also keeping it fresh.
Reading: なまびーる
Be careful to use kun’yomi for 生 here. Other than that, as long as you know your katakana, you should be good to go!

Question 12

山びこ

Answer 12

Echo
Kanji: 山 mountain + び + こ
You know that 山 means mountain. Add the hiragana びこ to the end and this gives you echo. That’s because bee children (bee 子) love echos, especially mountain echos! Imagine baby bees buzzing as loudly as they can and hearing their voices echoing back at them through the mountains.
As the kanji suggests, 山びこ is generally used to describe the echo you get if you shout in the mountains. To decribe other types of echo, you can use the katakana word エコー.
By the way, there is actually a kanji for the second part of this word, but it’s so rare that it’s usually written in kana!
Reading: やまびこ
You learned this kanji reading when you learned the vocabulary 山.

Question 13

元パートナー

Answer 13

Ex-partner
Kanji: 元 origin パ + ー + ト + ナ + ー
Your origin partner is a partner you had originally, but don’t have anymore. In other words, this is your ex-partner or former partner.
Like in English, this word is fairly formal, and it covers any kind of ex-partner, including business and romantic partners.
Readings: もとぱーとなー, もとパートナー
This uses the kun’yomi of 元 and then it’s just kana, so you should know how to read this!

Question 14

太い

Answer 14

Fat
Kanji: 太 fat + い
This is a single kanji with an い on the end, meaning you know it’s probably an adjective. What’s the adjective form of the fat? It’s the same: fat.
Reading: ふとい
This is the kun’yomi reading of the kanji (because it’s a single kanji, all alone with hiragana attached). The part you have to remember is the ふと portion. Let’s use a mnemonic.
The fat guy looked down and couldn’t see his foot (ふと).

Question 15

父

Answer 15

Father
Kanji: 父 father
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well. This is the polite and humble form of father. You use this when you’re talking about your own father to other people, especially if you aren’t very close to them.
Reading: ちち
The reading for this word is the same as the one you learned when learning the kanji.

Question 16

お父さん

Answer 16

Father
Kanji: お + 父 father + さ + ん
This word begins with an honorific (お), making whatever comes after it more elevated. Then there’s 父, which you know means father. Lastly, we have the honorific name ender さん. So this is a nice way to say father. You use it when you’re talking to your own dad or talking about him with friends. You can also use this when you’re talking about your friends’ dads.
In more formal settings, you’ll want to use 父 (pronounced ちち) to talk about your own dad and お父様 to talk about someone else’s dad. Don’t worry, you’ll learn that last kanji in a few lessons. Until then, it’s pronounced, おとうさま.
Reading: おとうさん
The part you have to learn to read is the 父 portion. This uses the kun’yomi, which you didn’t learn when doing the kanji.
Imagine you are taking your venerable father to とうきょう. He’s always wanted to go and this is the trip of a lifetime! Imagine walking through the streets of Tokyo with your Dad, taking in all the sights.

Question 17

少ない

Answer 17

Few
Kanji: 少 few + な + い
This word has a single kanji with hiragana attached, ending in a い. This means you know it’s an adjective. What is the adjective form of few? It’s also few.
Reading: すくない
The reading for this one is fairly difficult, as it’s the kun’yomi reading (you can tell it’s kun’yomi because of all the hiragana attached). You have to remember the すく part to remember the reading of this word. Think of it this way:
You have a few of something. This something is suckers (すく). Imagine putting all (three-ish) of them in your mouth at once. How does it taste? Can you taste the flavors from each of the few?

Question 18

五台

Answer 18

Five machines
Kanji: 五 five + 台 machine
As long as you know both of the individual kanji meanings, you should be able to put together this one to get five machines.
Reading: ごだい
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. If you know the readings of your kanji you’ll know how to read this as well.

Question 19

外人

Answer 19

Foreigner
Kanji: 外 outside + 人 person
An “outside person” is a foreigner. This word is fairly common, though it’s not super polite, either. It’s okay most of the time, but it can be used derogatorily depending on the situation. The more polite version is 外国人 (outside country person) but you won’t learn that until you learn the kanji for 国.
Reading: がいじん
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. Since 人 has two on’yomi readings, here’s a mnemonic to help you remember which one to use:
Who’s the foreigner? Well obviously the guy wearing jeans (がいじん)!

Question 20

フランス人

Answer 20

French person
Kanji: フ + ラ + ン + ス + 人 person
フランス is “France.” So what is a “France person?” That would be a French Person.
Readings: ふらんすじん, フランスじん
Often times, when two kanji come together to form a kanji compound (or jukugo), you use the on’yomi readings. This is similar to that, though instead of another kanji it’s a foreign word. This pattern works with almost any country as well. Just add 人 to a country name and you’ve described the people who live there. You’ll see more of these before you’re finished here.
And since 人 has two on’yomi readings, here’s a mnemonic to help you remember which one to use:
As with all words for nationalities, the 人 here is pronounced じん. Like people of all other nationalities, a French person loves their jeans (じん) too!

Question 21

生

Answer 21

Fresh
Kanji: 生 fresh
Normally a single kanji alone like this would mean the same thing as its parent kanji, but in the case of 生 it’s a little different (but still related). When you think of something that has life, it’s fresh or raw. Think sashimi or sushi, for example. You want that to be as close as possible to life as you can, so you eat it when it’s fresh and raw. This word can also be used to describe a live event, like a concert or sporting event.
You’ll see this word at the beginning of other words. For example, 生たまご is “raw egg.”
Reading: なま
This uses one of the kun’yomi readings. Here’s a mnemonic to help you remember it:
After eating raw fish, my yoga teacher and I say namaste (なま) to the sushi chef, bowing low to show our appreciation.

Question 22

友人

Answer 22

Friend
Kanji: 友 friend + 人 person
A person who is a friend is just that, a friend!
Note that 友人 is a more formal word that’s often used in professional settings.
Reading: ゆうじん
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. Since 人 has two on’yomi readings, here’s a mnemonic to help you remember which one to use:
All your friends are youths in jeans (ゆうじん)! Every single one. If any of your friends is not a youth in jeans, they’re simply not your friend, I’m afraid.

Question 23

毛

Answer 23

Fur
Kanji: 毛 fur
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well.
Reading: け
Since this word is made up of a single kanji, it should use the kun’yomi reading. When learning the kanji, you didn’t learn that reading, so here’s a mnemonic to help you with this word:
Look down! You’re holding something covered in fur. It’s a furry kettle (け)! It’s the weirdest kettle you’ve ever seen, but presumably it keeps the water hot for much longer.

Question 24

少女

Answer 24

Girl
Kanji: 少 little + 女 woman
A little woman is a girl or a young lady. This word is generally used to describe someone who’s between the ages of about five and eighteen.
Reading: しょうじょ
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. If you know the readings of your kanji you’ll know how to read this as well.

Question 25

半

Answer 25

Half
Kanji: 半 half
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well.
Reading: はん
Since this word is made up of a single kanji, it’s supposed to use the kun’yomi reading. But, there is no useful kun’yomi reading for this kanji, so even the single kanji vocab word version uses the on’yomi reading, which you’ve already learned!

Question 26

半分

Answer 26

Half
Kanji: 半 half + 分 part
You have half a part. Half a part is still half, right?
Reading: はんぶん
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. If you know the readings of your kanji you’ll know how to read this as well.

Question 27

心

Answer 27

Heart
Kanji: 心 heart
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well.
Reading: こころ
Since this word is made up of a single kanji, it should use the kun’yomi reading. When learning the kanji, you didn’t learn that reading, so here’s a mnemonic to help you with this word:
Imagine a giant heart sitting in a rowing boat. It’s also drinking cocoa. Focus on all three of these parts and associate them into one story / memory. Once you’ve done that, sing the “cocoa row” (こころ) song! I don’t know what that song is, but I want you to make one up and actually sing it, out loud. If you do, I bet you won’t forget this word’s reading too easily.

Question 28

こんにちは

Answer 28

Hello
Kanji: No kanji (hooray!)
Connie Chihuahua (こんにちは) says hello. Connie Chihuahua is an amazing talking chihuahua. She can only say “hello”, but that alone is pretty impressive.
こんにちは is a formal way to say “hello”. It’s generally used during the daytime, from late morning to early evening. Watch out for the は on the end, which is always pronounced わ.
Reading: こんにちは

Question 29

大切

Answer 29

Important
Kanji: 大 big + 切 cut
Think back to the old old olden days. Back when decisions were made with swords. A big cut is going to be important. Just imagine a couple samurai squaring off, then charging, then making one big cut. It’s the most important thing they’ll do in their lives (if they live!).
Reading: たいせつ
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. Since 大 has two on’yomi readings, here’s a mnemonic to help you remember which one to use:
It’s extremely important to keep your ties in sets (たいせつ). If you don’t arrange them neatly in sets, the tie police might just come knocking at your door and take you with them!

Question 30

内

Answer 30

Inside
Kanji: 内 inside
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well.
When this kanji is a word on its own, it’s actually very often written in hiragana. Still, the kanji version of the word is worth knowing, too!
Reading: うち
Since this word is made up of a single kanji, it should use the kun’yomi reading. When learning the kanji, you didn’t learn that reading, so here’s a mnemonic to help you with this word:
There’s something inside and you wanna get to what’s within. Look inside. Ooh, cheese (うち)! Your favorite. Ooh cheese, how I love you.

Question 31

戸

Answer 31

Japanese style door
Kanji: 戸 door
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well.
Reading: と
This has the same reading as the kanji you learned, meaning you know the reading!

Question 32

ビー玉

Answer 32

Marble
Kanji: ビ + ー + 玉 ball
When you see a katakana word, it’s a safe bet that it is a foreign loan word from somewhere else. This one’s interesting, because it combines katakana and kanji! The first marble came to Japan from Portugal, so the ビー part of the word is short for “vidro,” which means “glass” in Portuguese. Anyway, don’t get thrown off by that ビー. Maybe just imagine that your favorite marble is black and yellow like a bee.
Readings: びーだま, ビーだま
If you know katakana as well as the reading that you learned when you learned the kanji 玉, you should be able to read this. Just watch out for the rendaku.

Question 33

母

Answer 33

Mother
Kanji: 母 mother
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well. This is the polite and humble form of mother. You use this when you’re talking about your own mother to other people, especially if you aren’t very close to them.
Reading: はは
The reading is the kun’yomi reading, but this is the reading you learned with the kanji. Just remember, your mother is a terrible person and won’t stop laughing at you: “HA HA HA HA HA!”

Question 34

お母さん

Answer 34

Mother
Kanji: お + 母 mother + さ + ん
This word starts with お which makes it more polite. Then, there’s the kanji 母 which you know means mother. Last, there’s the honorific さん which further adds respect (to the mother). So, this is the nice way to say mother. You use it when you’re talking to your own mom or talking about her with friends. You can also use this when you’re talking about your friends’ moms.
If you need to talk about someone’s mother that you don’t really know, or you aren’t close to, you’ll want to use お母様, instead. Don’t worry, you’ll learn that last kanji in a few lessons. Until then, it’s pronounced, おかあさま. Kay?
Reading: おかあさん
Since this word is made up of a single kanji, it uses the kun’yomi reading. You have to remember the かあ portion. Here’s a mnemonic to help you to remember it:
What does your super nice mother do for you (this is why you’re so polite to her!)? She drives you all around in her car (かあ) taking you wherever you need to go… soccer, kendo, whatever. What a nice mother you have!

Question 35

市立

Answer 35

Municipal
Kanji: 市 city + 立 stand
The city stand is municipal in nature. Municipal means “of or relating to a city or its governing body”, and this vocabulary means just that. Or just city. City is fine too.
Reading: しりつ
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. If you know the readings of your kanji you’ll know how to read this as well.

Question 36

北

Answer 36

North
Kanji: 北 north
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well.
Reading: きた
Since this word is made up of a single kanji, it should use the kun’yomi reading. When learning the kanji, you didn’t learn that reading, so here’s a mnemonic to help you with this word:
You’re going to the far north where it’s very cold (north pole, perhaps?). One of the most important things you bring with you is a survival kit (きた).

Question 37

今

Answer 37

Now
Kanji: 今 now
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well.
Reading: いま
Since this word is made up of a single kanji, it should use the kun’yomi reading. When learning the kanji, you didn’t learn that reading, so here’s a mnemonic to help you with this word:
What’ll you drink now? I’ll have a Zima, ima.
Say “ZIMA IMA” ten times fast.

Question 38

〜人

Answer 38

Number of people
Kanji: 人 people
When you see this on a number, for example ７人 or ３人, you’re using it to count people. Just remember, both 一人 and 二人 have alternative readings. From 3 and up it’s just the number plus にん, like this. ５人 is ごにん, １０人 is じゅうにん, etc. This is the counter for people, which makes this word the number of people.
Reading: にん
This is a counter, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. Since 人 has two on’yomi readings, here’s a mnemonic to help you remember which one to use:
Just think of the sheer number of people at Nintendo (にん). It must be huge. This really is just a counter for people that work at Nintendo.

Question 39

大人しい

Answer 39

Obedient
Kanji: 大 big + 人 person + し + い
Remember how you learned that 大人 means “adult?” Well this is the adjective version of that. The I-adjective (see how it ends in い?). What adjective do adults want to be able to use for their own kids? They want to say they are obedient, quiet kids!
Reading: おとなしい
You already learned this reading when you learned 大人! You should be able to read this too!

Question 40

古い

Answer 40

Old
Kanji: 古 old + い
This is a single kanji with an い on the end, meaning you know it’s probably an adjective. What’s the adjective form of old? It’s also old, ancient, or out-of-date.
This word is used for things like clothes, food and friendships, but not for people! So a 古い友人 (old friend) is someone you’ve been friends with for a long time, not an elderly friend.
Reading: ふるい
Since this word is made up of a single kanji with some hiragana attached, it’s going to use the kun’yomi reading. You learned the on’yomi when learning the kanji portion, so let’s use a mnemonic to help you with the reading of this word:
If you’re old, you’re also full (ふる) of memories. And you’re probably full of old secrets. And you’re full from old people food.

Question 41

十万

Answer 41

One hundred thousand
Kanji: 十 ten + 万 ten thousand
Ten ten thousands is equal to one hundred thousand.
Reading: じゅうまん
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. If you know the readings of your kanji you’ll know how to read this as well.

Question 42

一台

Answer 42

One machine
Kanji: 一 one + 台 machine
As long as you know the two kanji that make up this word, you should be able to figure out the meaning of this word as well.
Reading: いちだい
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. If you know the readings of your kanji you’ll know how to read this as well.

Question 43

人生

Answer 43

One’s life
Kanji: 人 person + 生 life
The kanji for person and life combined makes you think about human life. What is your human life like?
Reading: じんせい
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. Since 人 and 生 both have two on’yomi readings, here’s a mnemonic to help you:
Your life boils down to just two things: jeans and a saber (じんせい). Your whole life, that’s all you’ve ever needed, jeans and a saber. What are you, some kind of American pirate?

Question 44

テーブルの上

Answer 44

On the table
Kanji: テ + ー + ブ + ル + の + 上 above
First we have a katakana word, so it’s safe to assume that it’s a loan word. Like many loan words, it comes from English. Say it out loud and what do you have? That’s right, “table”. Then comes the particle の, which joins two nouns together. Finally we have 上, which you learned means “up” or “above”. Put all of these pieces together and we have a phrase meaning on the table or tabletop!
Reading: てーぶるのうえ, テーブルのうえ
In this phrase, 上 is a standalone word, so it uses the same reading that you learned when you learned the vocabulary. Easy to stay on top of that one, right?

Question 45

元

Answer 45

Origin
Kanji: 元 origin
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well. When it’s used as a prefix, it takes on the related meaning of ex- or former.
Reading: もと
Since this word is made up of a single kanji, it should use the kun’yomi reading. When learning the kanji, you didn’t learn that reading, so here’s a mnemonic to help you with this word:
You’re trying to trace a person back to their origin so you can learn more about them. You finally get there - it’s a castle. The problem is that it’s surrounded by a huge moat (もと) and you can’t get past it because the drawbridge is up. Feel the frustration of this. Think about your goal and how close you are to getting to it if it wasn’t for this lousy moat.

Question 46

外

Answer 46

Outside
Kanji: 外 outside
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well.
Reading: そと
Since this word is made up of a single kanji, it should use the kun’yomi reading. When learning the kanji, you didn’t learn that reading, so here’s a mnemonic to help you with this word:
You look outside, it’s totally frozen. You throw salt (そと) outside to melt the ice.

Question 47

分

Answer 47

Part
Kanji: 分 part
This word has the same meaning that you learned with the kanji: part, or portion. By extension, it can also mean content, as in “alcohol content” because that’s the portion of alcohol in a drink.
This word is used for fractions, too, as in one third or one quarter. Again, you can see how this links to “parts” and “portions”, right?
Reading: ぶん
This word is usually combined with a word or phrase indicating whose part or portion you’re referring to. That’s probably why this single kanji vocab word uses the on’yomi instead of the kun’yomi reading. Check out the collocations to see what we’re talking about!
And when it means part or portion, it’s read ぶん. Probably because your buns come in two parts. Ohoho.

Question 48

シアトル市

Answer 48

Seattle
Kanji: シ + ア + ト + ル + 市 city
The name of the city (シアトル／しあとる) with a 市 attached to it means it is “the city of ____.” You can do this with any city (try it out on your hometown!). So this word means Seattle, or more specifically City of Seattle.
Reading: しあとるし, シアトルし
This word uses on’yomi reading, which you learned with the kanji.

Question 49

中古

Answer 49

Secondhand
Kanji: 中 middle + 古 old
The combination of kanji doesn’t make perfect sense, but it’s alright. Take something that’s middle old and you have something that’s used or secondhand. It’s not 100% old yet… it’s still in the middle, meaning you can give it to someone else to use, like your younger siblings.
Reading: ちゅうこ
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. If you know the readings of your kanji you’ll know how to read this as well.

Question 50

日の出

Answer 50

Sunrise
Kanji: 日 sun + の + 出 + exit
What do we call the sun’s exit from the horizon? That’ll be the sunrise. Imagine the sun exiting the horizon and climbing up into the sky.
Reading: ひので
This uses the kanji’s kun’yomi readings, which you’ve already learned. As long as you remember those, you should be good to go!

Question 51

用

Answer 51

Task
Kanji: 用 task
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well.
Reading: よう
This one uses the on’yomi reading, which you’ve learned from the kanji already!

Question 52

十台

Answer 52

Ten machines
Kanji: 十 ten + 台 machine
If you know the two kanji separately, you should be able to put them together to form the meaning of this kanji.
Reading: じゅうだい
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. If you know the readings of your kanji you’ll know how to read this as well.

Question 53

一万

Answer 53

Ten thousand
Kanji: 一 one + 万 ten thousand
When you have one ten thousand you just have ten thousand. In Japanese, though, you specify how many ten thousands you have, though (which is weird in English, but should make sense if you think about it).
Reading: いちまん
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. If you know the readings of your kanji you’ll know how to read this as well.

Question 54

万

Answer 54

Ten thousand
Kanji: 万 ten thousand
When a vocab word is a single kanji without okurigana (hiragana attached to the kanji) it usually has the same meaning as the kanji it’s spawned from. If you know the kanji meaning you’ll also know the vocab meaning. It’s ten thousand!
Reading: まん
When a vocab word is a single kanji with no okurigana, it usually uses the kun’yomi reading. Numbers are an exception to this. Numbers use the on’yomi reading, which you’ve already learned by learning the kanji’s reading! How nice!

Question 55

今月

Answer 55

This month
Kanji: 今 now + 月 month
The now month is actually this month.
Reading: こんげつ
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. Since 月 has two on’yomi readings, here’s a mnemonic to help you remember which one to use:
Only this month, your pet condor gets (こんげつ) to sleep in your bed. You usually keep it in a cage, but once a year, you make an exception. And that’s this month. How cute!

Question 56

これ

Answer 56

This one
Kanji: No kanji (hooray!)
Collect (これ) this one right here! Go ahead, collect this one.
You can use これ to talk about anything that’s close to you. Things that are close to you are easy to collect, after all!
Reading: これ

Question 57

生まれる

Answer 57

To be born
Kanji: 生 life + ま + れ + る
Since this is a kanji with hiragana attached that ends with an う sound, you know that this word is a verb. What’s the ultimate verb version of the kanji 生? That would be to be born, the very beginning of life as we know it!
Reading: うまれる
You have to remember the う part of this word to read it. To remember that, let’s use a mnemonic:
Something is about to be born, and when you lean in for a closer look… it’s an uni (う). Yes, a sea urchin. You weren’t expecting that. Close your eyes and imagine what the process of an uni being born might look like, to help you remember this reading.

Question 58

切る

Answer 58

To cut
Kanji: 切 cut + る
This word consists of kanji with hiragana attached. Because the hiragana ends with an う sound, you know this word is a verb. The kanji itself means cut, and the verb form of that is to cut.
Reading: きる
When you think to cut something, what do you think about cutting? One thing is cutting down a tree, which is also known as 木, or き. You きる a き.

Question 59

今日

Answer 59

Today
Kanji: 今 now + 日 day
The now day is what day? Oh, it’s today.
Reading: きょう
The reading for this word is a complete exception, though the word itself is incredibly common and useful. When you think of “today” think about what you have to do today for work.
You have to work in one of those mall kiosks (きょう). Just think about how sad you are that you have to do this today. What a crummy day. It’s sunny outside and you’re stuck in a mall manning this hermit crab kiosk.
Note: This reading mnemonic is pretty far away from the actual reading, as far as reading mnemonics go. Use this to get yourself close, and then use your own brain grapes to get the rest of the way there. This one won’t be as easy as most of the others, but do some good old fashioned memorization and you should be okay. I won’t ask you to do this much, fortunately. :)

Question 60

する

Answer 60

To do
Kanji: No kanji (hooray!)
It’s only through (する) doing things that we get better at them, so you need to do them as much as you can.
する basically means to do, but it’s incredibly versatile and goes beyond its English equivalent. Besides being used alone, it can be put together with a whole range of nouns to turn them into verbs. We call these する verbs and you’ll learn a lot of them as we go along!
Reading: する

Question 61

太る

Answer 61

To get fat
Kanji: 太 fat + る
This word consists of kanji with hiragana attached. Because the hiragana ends with an う sound, you know this word is a verb. The kanji itself means fat so the verb form of that is to get fat.
Reading: ふとる
Since this word consists of a kanji with hiragana attached, you can bet that it will use the kun’yomi reading. You have to learn the ふと portion of this word to be able to read it. Here’s a mnemonic to help you:
You’re getting fat so quickly that you can see your body expanding. You look down - at first you can see your foot (ふと) but then a second later you can’t. You can’t see your foot because you’re getting fat, even when you stick your foot way out. What’s going on?

Question 62

引く

Answer 62

To pull
Kanji: 引 pull + く
This word consists of kanji with hiragana attached. Because the hiragana ends with an う sound, you know this word is a verb. The kanji itself means pull and the verb version vocab means to pull.
This word has other meanings too! When you pull numbers away from other numbers, what you’re really doing is subtracting them. That’s why this word also means to subtract. And when you pull something towards you, that’s to attract it.
Reading: ひく
Since this word consists of a kanji with hiragana attached, you can bet that it will use the kun’yomi reading. The reading (ひ) is the same as the one you learned for the kanji, meaning you should already know it!

Question 63

広げる

Answer 63

To spread something
Kanji: 広 wide + げ + る
This word consists of kanji with hiragana attached. Because the hiragana ends with an う sound, you know this word is a verb.
The kanji itself means wide, and the verb version is what happens when you try to make something wider. How do you make something wider? That’s right, you have to spread something, to unfold something or to open something up. All of those actions will make a thing wider!
This is a transitive verb. That means it takes a direct object. You spread something. Like a newspaper, or a cloth on a table.
Reading: ひろげる
Since this word has okurigana (hiragana attached to the kanji) you know that it’s probably going to be the kun’yomi reading. You learned this reading with the kanji, but here’s a reminder mnemonic to help you:
You are going to spread something. What are you going to spread? How about your arms, so that you can fly into the sky like the super hero (ひろ) that you are! Most heroes can fly when they spread their arms wide!

Question 64

止める

Answer 64

To stop something
Kanji: 止 stop + め + る
This word consists of kanji with hiragana attached. Because the hiragana ends with an う sound, you know this word is a verb. The kanji itself means stop and the verb vocab version of that is to stop something.
This particular word is when you’re stopping something (i.e. doing the action of stopping it).
Reading: とめる
Since this word consists of a kanji with hiragana attached, you can bet that it will use the kun’yomi reading. You didn’t learn that reading with this kanji, so here’s a mnemonic to help you:
You need to stop something from moving. Maybe a car… or a door… or a person… whatever you want. To stop this thing, you throw out your toe (と), getting it smashed in the process. Imagine it bleeding and swelling up. How much it hurts! You put your toe out to stop this big thing, what a mistake!

Question 65

用いる

Answer 65

To utilize
Kanji: 用 task + い + る
This word consists of kanji with hiragana attached. Because the hiragana ends with an う sound, you know this word is a verb. The kanji itself means task or use. You can think of this verb as a more formal way to say to use, and that is to utilize.
Reading: もちいる
Since this word consists of a kanji with hiragana attached, you can bet that it will use the kun’yomi reading. You didn’t learn that reading with this kanji, so here’s a mnemonic to help you to learn the もち portion of もちいる:
What will you utilize to get the job done? You have mochi (もち) in your hand, so you’ll use that. Now go think of some kind of imaginary task you’ll complete with mochi, making it as ridiculous as possible.

Question 66

二万

Answer 66

Twenty thousand
Kanji: 二 two + 万 ten thousand
When you have two ten thousands, you have twenty thousand.
Reading: にまん
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. If you know the readings of your kanji you’ll know how to read this as well.

Question 67

二台

Answer 67

Two machines
Kanji: 二 two + 台 machine
When you combine these two kanji, you should be able to see how it forms the word two machines.
Reading: にだい
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. If you know the readings of your kanji you’ll know how to read this as well.

Question 68

ベッドの下

Answer 68

Under the bed
Kanji: ベ + ッ + ド + の+ 下 below
This starts with another katakana word, so you can assume that it’s a loan word. This one also comes from English. Can you figure out what it means? That’s right, “bed”. Then comes the particle の, which joins two nouns together. Finally, we have 下, which you learned means “down” or “below”. Put these elements together and you get below the bed, under the bed or beneath the bed. What’s under your bed?
Readings: べっどのした, ベッドのした
下 is a standalone word here, so it uses the same reading that you learned when you learned the vocabulary.

Question 69

方

Answer 69

Way
Kanji: 方 way
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well.
Readings: かた, ほう
Since this word is made up of a single kanji, it should use the kun’yomi reading, but it can be either that or the on’yomi reading, depending on the context. You haven’t learned the kun’yomi reading for 方 yet, so there’s a mnemonic to help you:
You need to go a certain direction. How do you get there? By jumping into a catapult (かた) and shooting yourself the right way. Need to get a particular direction fast? Consider the catapult next time.

Question 70

いつ

Answer 70

When
Kanji: No kanji (hooray!)
He eats (いつ) and eats and eats. When does this guy not eat?
いつ is a question word that is used to ask when.
Reading: いつ

Question 71

広い

Answer 71

Wide
Kanji: 広 wide + い
This is a single kanji with an い on the end, meaning you know it’s probably an adjective. What’s the adjective form of wide? It’s also wide.
Reading: ひろい
The reading for this word is the same as the reading you learned in the kanji section: ひろ, making this ひろい.

Question 72

冬

Answer 72

Winter
Kanji: 冬 winter
The kanji and the word are exactly the same. That means they share meanings as well.
Reading: ふゆ
The reading for this word is the same as the kun’yomi reading you learned for the kanji, meaning you should know both!

Question 73

女の人

Answer 73

Woman
Kanji: 女 woman + の + 人 person
The の particle makes it so the 人 belongs to the 女. Basically, this literally means “a woman person” or “a person of woman.” It’s a more polite way to say plain old woman, though, so all you have to remember is that.
Reading: おんなのひと
This word is actually two separate words combined with a particle. So, since you treat them like separate words, you read each of them with the kun’yomi readings (they are both single kanji words all alone). That being said, in level 1 you learned about the vocab readings for these separate words, so use that knowledge to remember the reading for this word as well.

Question 74

中止

Answer 74

Suspension
Kanji: 中 middle + 止 stop
When something is in the middle of an action but it’s stopped, this means it’s put into suspension. Imagine getting frozen while you’re running. It’s kind of like that.
Reading: ちゅうし
This is a jukugo word, which usually means on’yomi readings from the kanji. If you know the readings of your kanji you’ll know how to read this as well.