Meet 元 in 元気, 元日, and other useful words. Read the examples and connect each word to its meaning.

The idea

元 has 4 strokes; follow the linked KanjiVG diagram. Learn 元気 (げんき) and 元日 (がんじつ) as whole words: a character’s reading depends on the word.

Patterns to compare
Japanese wordReadingExample in context
元気げんきMy mother is well.
元日がんじつI see my family on New Year’s Day.
元のもとのI put it back in its original place.
地元じもとI met a friend at my local station.

Examples

  • 母ははは元気げんきです。My mother is well.
  • 元日がんじつに家族かぞくと会あいます。I see my family on New Year’s Day.
  • 元もとの場所ばしょにそれを戻もどします。I put it back in its original place.
  • 地元じもとの駅えきで友達ともだちに会あいました。I met a friend at my local station.
  • 元気げんきな子供こどもが公園こうえんで走はしっています。An energetic child is running in the park.
  • 新あたらしい鍵かぎを元もとの箱はこに入いれます。I put the new key in the original box.

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

Watch out

Here, 元気 means “well; in good spirits”; 元日 means “New Year’s Day, January 1”. Compare 元気 (げんき) and 元日 (がんじつ) in context: “My mother is well.” and “I see my family on New Year’s Day.” The same character does not make the words interchangeable. Compare the shapes of 元 and 天 as well.

Try it yourself

  1. Write the reading of 元気 in hiragana.

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    げんき

    元気 is read げんき. In context: My mother is well.

  2. Write the reading of 元日 in hiragana.

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    がんじつ

    元日 is read がんじつ. In context: I see my family on New Year’s Day.

  3. Write the missing kanji: ＿気 [元 / 天] (げんき).

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    元

    元 completes 元気, read げんき. In context: My mother is well.

Use it today

Cover the table, write 元 from memory, then read 元気 and 元日 aloud. Check the readings and contexts.