Explore 辺 in words for an area around a place and for a waterside. Learn the reading together with each word.

The idea

辺 has 5 strokes; follow the linked diagram. 周辺 is しゅうへん, 辺り is あたり, 川辺 is かわべ and この辺 is このへん. The reading changes with the word.

Patterns to compare
Japanese wordReadingExample in context
周辺しゅうへんThere are many restaurants around the station.
辺りあたりA cat is sleeping near the window.
川辺かわべWe walked along the riverbank.
この辺このへんDo you know a good café around here?

Examples

  • 駅えきの周辺しゅうへんにはレストランがたくさんあります。There are many restaurants around the station.
  • この辺あたりは夜よるは静しずかです。The area around here is quiet at night.
  • 川辺かわべを歩あるきました。We walked along the riverbank.
  • 周辺しゅうへんの地図ちずを見みてください。Please look at the map of the surrounding area.
  • 窓まどの辺あたりで猫ねこが寝ねています。A cat is sleeping near the window.
  • この辺へんでいいカフェを知しっていますか。Do you know a good café around here?

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

Watch out

辺り can mean an approximate area, while 川辺 names the riverside. この辺 can be read このへん or このあたり; do not assume one reading fits every compound.

Try it yourself

  1. Write the reading of 周辺 in hiragana.

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    しゅうへん

    周辺 is しゅうへん: it refers to the area surrounding a place.

  2. Write the reading of 川辺 in hiragana.

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    かわべ

    川辺 is かわべ: it means the riverside, not the whole surrounding area.

  3. Choose the missing kanji: 周＿（しゅうへん）［辺／返］.

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    辺

    辺 completes 周辺, read しゅうへん; it means the surrounding area.

Use it today

Write 辺 following the diagram. Cover the table, read 周辺 and 川辺, then make a sentence about your surroundings.