Recognise 乗 in words such as 乗る and 乗せる. Learn the whole word together with its reading and meaning.

The idea

Read 乗る as のる and 乗せる as のせる. 乗 has 9 strokes; use the linked KanjiVG diagram to follow their order. Many kanji have Japanese-origin readings (kun) and readings borrowed through Chinese (on); learn each with its word. N3 is an approximate learning level, not an official JLPT kanji list. In 乗車券 (じょうしゃけん), 乗 uses its on reading じょう.

Patterns to compare
Japanese wordReadingMeaning
乗るのるto ride; to board
乗せるのせるto give someone a ride; to put on board
乗り場のりばboarding point; stop
乗車券じょうしゃけんtransport ticket

Examples

  • 駅えきからバスに乗のります。I take the bus from the station.
  • 次つぎの電車でんしゃに乗のりましょう。Let’s take the next train.
  • 父ちちは私わたしを車くるまに乗のせてくれました。My father gave me a ride in the car.
  • 友達ともだちを乗のせて、駅えきまで行いきました。I gave a friend a ride to the station.
  • バスの乗のり場ばは駅えきの前まえです。The bus stop is in front of the station.
  • 乗のり場ばで友達ともだちを待まちます。I will wait for a friend at the boarding point.
  • 乗車券じょうしゃけんを窓口まどぐちで買かいました。I bought a ticket at the counter.

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

Watch out

With 乗る, に marks the vehicle; with 乗せる, を marks the person carried. Compare the shapes of 乗 and 重; they are different characters.

Try it yourself

  1. Write the reading of 乗る in hiragana.

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    のる

    乗る is read のる; it means to ride; to board.

  2. Write the reading of 乗せる in hiragana.

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    のせる

    乗せる is read のせる; it means to give someone a ride; to put on board.

  3. Fill in the missing kanji: ＿り場（のりば）.

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    乗

    乗 completes 乗り場, read のりば; it means boarding point; stop.

Use it today

Cover the table, write 乗 from memory, and read 乗る and 乗せる aloud. Then use one in a sentence.