Meet 孫 in everyday family conversations and in a word for later generations. Learn each reading with the whole word.
The idea
孫 has 10 strokes. Its usual reading alone is まご, as in 孫娘（まごむすめ）; in 子孫（しそん） it is そん. Follow the linked stroke-order diagram.
Examples
- 孫は大阪に住んでいます。My grandchild lives in Osaka.
- 孫に絵本を読んでいます。I read a picture book to my grandchild.
- お孫さんは何歳ですか。How old is your grandchild?
- 彼女の孫娘は音楽が大好きです。Her granddaughter loves music.
- 孫たちとお正月を過ごしました。We spent the New Year with our grandchildren.
- その話を子孫に伝えました。They passed the story on to their descendants.
Read-aloud uses a synthetic Japanese voice available on your device. Voice quality and availability vary; it does not assess your pronunciation.
No Japanese device voice is available. You can still read the text and use the linked listening resources.
Watch out
孫 is a grandchild, while 子孫 means descendants more broadly. お孫さん is a respectful way to speak about someone else’s grandchild.
Try it yourself
Write the reading of 孫 in hiragana.
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まご
孫 is まご: it refers to a child of one’s child.
Write the reading of 子孫 in hiragana.
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しそん
子孫 is しそん: the compound refers to descendants, not only grandchildren.
Choose the missing kanji: 孫＿（まごむすめ）［娘／息］.
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娘
娘 completes 孫娘（まごむすめ）, meaning granddaughter.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Japanese sentences where available. We keep your score.
Write the reading of 孫 in hiragana.
Write the reading of 子孫 in hiragana.
Choose the missing kanji: 孫＿（まごむすめ）［娘／息］.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
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Write 孫 following the diagram, then cover the readings and explain the difference between 孫 and 子孫. Make a sentence about a family.