Meet 漢 in 漢字 and 漢文. The examples connect each word’s reading with a useful context.

The idea

漢 has 13 strokes; follow their order in the linked KanjiVG diagram. Learn 漢字（かんじ） and 漢文（かんぶん） as complete words: a character’s reading depends on the word.

Patterns to compare
Japanese wordReadingExample in context
漢字かんじI practise kanji every day.
漢文かんぶんWe read classical Chinese in class.
漢語かんごWe compare Sino-Japanese and native Japanese words.

Examples

  • 漢字かんじを毎日まいにち練習れんしゅうします。I practise kanji every day.
  • 新あたらしい漢字かんじをノートに書かきます。I write new kanji in my notebook.
  • この漢字かんじは何なんと読よみますか。How do you read this kanji?
  • 漢字かんじの意味いみを辞書じしょで調しらべます。I look up the meaning of a kanji in a dictionary.
  • 漢文かんぶんを授業じゅぎょうで読よみました。We read classical Chinese in class.
  • 漢語かんごと和語わごを比くらべます。We compare Sino-Japanese and native Japanese words.

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

Watch out

漢字 are characters; 漢文 refers to classical Chinese text, while 漢語 can mean Sino-Japanese vocabulary. Do not equate a character with a whole language. Compare the shapes of 漢 and 難; they are different characters.

Try it yourself

  1. Write the reading of 漢字 in hiragana.

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    かんじ

    漢字 is read かんじ. In context: I practise kanji every day.

  2. Write the reading of 漢文 in hiragana.

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    かんぶん

    漢文 is read かんぶん. In context: We read classical Chinese in class.

  3. Write the missing kanji: ＿字（かんじ）.

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    漢

    漢 completes 漢字, read かんじ. In context: I practise kanji every day.

Use it today

Cover the table, write 漢 from memory, read 漢字 and 漢文 aloud, then make a sentence with one of them.