Recognize 青 in 青い and 青空; learn the whole words and use them in everyday sentences.

The idea

青 has 8 strokes; follow the order in the linked KanjiVG diagram. Read 青い as あおい and 青空 as あおぞら. Learn each reading together with the whole word and its meaning.

Patterns to compare
Japanese wordReadingMeaning
青いあおいblue
青空あおぞらblue sky
青信号あおしんごうgreen traffic light
青あおblue

Examples

  • この傘かさはとても青あおいです。This umbrella is very blue.
  • 青あおい花はなを一ひとつ買かいました。I bought one blue flower.
  • 今日きょうは青空あおぞらがきれいです。The blue sky is beautiful today.
  • 青信号あおしんごうで道みちを渡わたります。I cross the road at the green light.
  • 青あおのペンをここで使つかいます。I use the blue pen here.
  • 海うみが青あおくてきれいです。The sea is blue and beautiful.

Read-aloud uses a synthetic Japanese voice available on your device. Voice quality and availability vary; it does not assess your pronunciation.

Watch out

青信号 means a green traffic light even though 青 often means blue. In 青空, the second part begins with ぞ.

Try it yourself

  1. Write the reading of 青い in hiragana.

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    あおい

    青い is read あおい; it means blue. Remember the reading with the complete word.

  2. Write the reading of 青空 in hiragana.

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    あおぞら

    青空 is read あおぞら; it means blue sky. Remember the reading with the complete word.

  3. Complete the missing kanji from this lesson: ＿信号（あおしんごう）.

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    青

    青 completes 青信号, read あおしんごう; the complete expression means green traffic light.

Use it today

Cover the table, write 青 from memory in stroke order, and read 青い and 青空 aloud. Then check their readings and meanings.