🇯🇵 JAPANESE
Kanji – Batch 06
漢字 26–30 · 下 気 小 七 山 · JLPT N5
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A – Flashcard Practice
Click each card to reveal the meaning and readings. Aim to recall the meaning before you flip.
B – Type the On-yomi
Type the romaji for the on-yomi of each kanji. Any one correct on-yomi is accepted — e.g. ka, ki, shou, shichi, san.
C – Type the Meaning
Type the primary English meaning of each kanji. Synonyms are accepted — e.g. below / down for 下, spirit / energy for 気, small for 小.
下
below / down
On: カ (ka) · ゲ (ge) | Kun: した (shita) · しも (shimo) · もと (moto) · さげる (sageru) · くだる (kudaru)
Mnemonic
下 is the exact mirror of 上 (above). Where 上 has a vertical stroke rising above a baseline, 下 has a vertical stroke pointing down below it — like a plumb bob hanging from a horizontal beam. The small horizontal tick at the very bottom says "this is as far down as it goes."
カ vs ゲ vs した: カ appears in formal/official compounds (下院 ka'in — lower house of parliament; 下降 kakou — descent). ゲ appears in everyday compounds (下手 heta — unskilled; 下駄 geta — wooden sandals). した is the spoken word for "below/under a surface." The contrast with 上 is your best study tool — practise them as a matched pair.
カ vs ゲ vs した: カ appears in formal/official compounds (下院 ka'in — lower house of parliament; 下降 kakou — descent). ゲ appears in everyday compounds (下手 heta — unskilled; 下駄 geta — wooden sandals). した is the spoken word for "below/under a surface." The contrast with 上 is your best study tool — practise them as a matched pair.
Key vocabulary
- 1下もと (moto)under; beneath; at the foot of
- 2下げるさげる (sageru)to lower; to hang down
- 3引き下げひきさげ (hikisage)reduction; lowering
- 4下りくだり (kudari)descent; going down
- 5下院かいん (ka'in)lower house (parliament)
Sentences in context
Shita wo mite kudasai.
下を見てください。
"Below (obj) please-look."
Please look down.
Nedan wo sagemashita.
値段を下げました。
"Price (obj) lowered."
I lowered the price.
Yamakudari wa taihen desu.
山下りは大変です。
"Mountain-descent as-for tough is."
Going down the mountain is tough.
気
spirit / energy
On: キ (ki) · ケ (ke) | Kun: いき (iki)
Mnemonic
The simplified 気 replaced the older 氣, which depicted steam (气) rising from a pot of cooking rice (米). The radical 气 (radical #84) represents breath, vapour, or flowing air. 気 keeps that invisible essence: it is the life-force, spirit, feeling, and atmosphere that surrounds and flows through everything.
気 (ki) is the same concept as Chinese qì and is central to martial arts (気合い ki'ai — fighting spirit), medicine (元気 genki — vigour/health), and daily speech (気持ち kimochi — feeling; 天気 tenki — weather, literally "sky-spirit"). When you learn 気 you are learning one of the most culturally loaded characters in the language.
気 (ki) is the same concept as Chinese qì and is central to martial arts (気合い ki'ai — fighting spirit), medicine (元気 genki — vigour/health), and daily speech (気持ち kimochi — feeling; 天気 tenki — weather, literally "sky-spirit"). When you learn 気 you are learning one of the most culturally loaded characters in the language.
Key vocabulary
- 1気き (ki)spirit; feeling; energy
- 2景気けいき (keiki)economic climate; business conditions
- 3人気にんき (ninki)popularity
- 4気持ちきもち (kimochi)feeling; mood
- 5電気でんき (denki)electricity; electric light
Sentences in context
Kimochi ga ii desu.
気持ちがいいです。
"Feeling (subj) good is."
I feel good.
Denki wo keshite kudasai.
電気を消してください。
"Electricity (obj) please-turn-off."
Please turn off the lights.
Ano mise wa ninki ga arimasu.
あの店は人気があります。
"That shop as-for popularity (subj) exists."
That shop is popular.
小
small
On: ショウ (shou) | Kun: ちいさい (chiisai) · こ- (ko-) · お- (o-) · さ- (sa-)
Mnemonic
小 is a vertical center stroke with one small dash on each side — picture a tall thing flanked by two tiny things, making everything beside the center look proportionally small. Or: it is a person spreading their fingers close together ("this small!").
Compare with 大 (big): 大 spreads three strokes outward boldly; 小 keeps two side strokes close and low. They are visual antonyms — study them side by side. ショウ governs most compounds: 小学校 (shougakkoo — elementary school), 小説 (shousetsu — novel), 中小企業 (chuushoo kigyou — SMEs). こ- and お- are prefix forms in native Japanese words: 小川 (ogawa — stream), 小雨 (kosame — light rain).
Compare with 大 (big): 大 spreads three strokes outward boldly; 小 keeps two side strokes close and low. They are visual antonyms — study them side by side. ショウ governs most compounds: 小学校 (shougakkoo — elementary school), 小説 (shousetsu — novel), 中小企業 (chuushoo kigyou — SMEs). こ- and お- are prefix forms in native Japanese words: 小川 (ogawa — stream), 小雨 (kosame — light rain).
Key vocabulary
- 1小選挙区しょうせんきょく (shousenkkyoku)single-member constituency
- 2小学校しょうがっこう (shougakkoo)elementary school
- 3小説しょうせつ (shousetsu)novel; fiction
- 4小学生しょうがくせい (shougakusei)elementary school student
- 5中小企業ちゅうしょうきぎょう (chuushoo kigyou)small and medium enterprises
Sentences in context
Chiisai inu ga suki desu.
小さい犬がすきです。
"Small dog (subj) like is."
I like small dogs.
Shousetsu wo yonde imasu.
小説を読んでいます。
"Novel (obj) reading am."
I am reading a novel.
Shougakkoo ni kayotte imasu.
小学校に通っています。
"Elementary-school to attending am."
I attend elementary school.
七
seven
On: シチ (shichi) | Kun: なな (nana) · ななつ (nanatsu) · なの (nano)
Mnemonic
七 looks like a European-style 7 with a crossbar — the way many Europeans write 7̶ with a slash through the middle, you get 七. One horizontal stroke at the top, one vertical stroke cutting down through it. If you already write your sevens with a crossbar, you already know this kanji.
なな vs シチ: なな is preferred when counting standalone (なな、ひち is a common slip — always なな for native counting). シチ sounds close to し (four) and ち (blood), so context matters in fast speech. In months: 七月 is しちがつ (shichigatsu — July). In times: 7時 is しちじ (shichiji). なな is safer when ambiguity might cause confusion.
なな vs シチ: なな is preferred when counting standalone (なな、ひち is a common slip — always なな for native counting). シチ sounds close to し (four) and ち (blood), so context matters in fast speech. In months: 七月 is しちがつ (shichigatsu — July). In times: 7時 is しちじ (shichiji). なな is safer when ambiguity might cause confusion.
Key vocabulary
- 1七しち / なな (shichi / nana)seven
- 2七月しちがつ (shichigatsu)July
- 3十七じゅうしち / じゅうなな (juushichi / juunana)seventeen
- 4七十しちじゅう / ななじゅう (shichijuu / nanajuu)seventy
- 5四十七士しじゅうしちし (shijuushichishi)the 47 ronin
Sentences in context
Shichigatsu ni tanjoubi ga arimasu.
七月にたんじょうびがあります。
"July in birthday (subj) exists."
My birthday is in July.
Shichi-ji ni okimashita.
七時に起きました。
"Seven-o'clock at woke-up."
I woke up at seven.
Juunana-sai no toki ryokou shimashita.
十七歳の時旅行しました。
"Seventeen-years-old 's time traveled."
I traveled when I was seventeen.
山
mountain
On: サン (san) · セン (sen) | Kun: やま (yama)
Mnemonic
山 is one of the most iconic pictograms in any writing system: three peaks of a mountain range, with the center summit tallest. Left slope, center peak, right slope — it has looked like mountains for over 3,000 years. No mnemonic is needed — just look at it.
サン in proper names: 富士山 is Fujisan (not Fujiyama in formal use), 青山 (Aoyama — a district of Tokyo) uses the kun-yomi やま for place names but compound names can vary. セン is rare and found mainly in 山車 (dashi — festival float) and literary contexts. やま is the everyday word and appears in the majority of geographical names.
サン in proper names: 富士山 is Fujisan (not Fujiyama in formal use), 青山 (Aoyama — a district of Tokyo) uses the kun-yomi やま for place names but compound names can vary. セン is rare and found mainly in 山車 (dashi — festival float) and literary contexts. やま is the everyday word and appears in the majority of geographical names.
Key vocabulary
- 1山やま (yama)mountain
- 2火山かざん (kazan)volcano
- 3青山せいざん (seizan)green mountains; Aoyama
- 4山形やまがた (yamagata)Yamagata (prefecture)
- 5登山とざん (tozan)mountain climbing
Sentences in context
Yama ga miemasu.
山が見えます。
"Mountain (subj) can-see."
I can see the mountain.
Kazan wa kowai desu.
火山は怖いです。
"Volcano as-for scary is."
Volcanoes are scary.
Tozan ga suki desu.
登山がすきです。
"Mountain-climbing (subj) like is."
I like mountain climbing.
| Kanji | Meaning | On-yomi | Kun-yomi | JLPT | Strokes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 下 | below / down | カ (ka) · ゲ (ge) | した (shita) · さげる (sageru) · くだる (kudaru) | N5 | 3 |
| 気 | spirit / energy | キ (ki) · ケ (ke) | いき (iki) | N5 | 6 |
| 小 | small | ショウ (shou) | ちいさい (chiisai) · こ- (ko-) · お- (o-) | N5 | 3 |
| 七 | seven | シチ (shichi) | なな (nana) · ななつ (nanatsu) · なの (nano) | N5 | 2 |
| 山 | mountain | サン (san) · セン (sen) | やま (yama) | N5 | 3 |