Recognize 君 in 君, 君主 and 田中君; learn each complete word in context.

The idea

君 (きみ) means you (informal); 君主 (くんしゅ) means monarch; ruler; 田中君 (たなかくん) means Tanaka with the suffix 君. 君 has 7 strokes; follow the linked KanjiVG diagram to write them in order. Learn each reading with its word. Sino-Japanese reading: クン（君主）; Japanese-origin reading: きみ（君）.

Patterns to compare
Japanese wordReadingMeaning
君きみyou (informal)
君主くんしゅmonarch; ruler
田中君たなかくんTanaka with the suffix 君

Examples

  • 君きみの考かんがえを聞ききたいです。I would like to hear what you think.
  • 君きみならきっとできます。I am sure you can do it.
  • この物語ものがたりの君主くんしゅは国くにを治おさめています。The monarch in this story rules the country.
  • 授業じゅぎょうで君主くんしゅの役割やくわりについて学まなびました。In class, we learned about the role of a monarch.
  • 田中たなか君くんは今日きょう休やすみです。Tanaka is absent today.
  • 田中たなか君くんの発表はっぴょうはわかりやすかったです。Tanaka’s presentation was easy to understand.

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

Watch out

君 as きみ is familiar and can sound condescending, so avoid it for a superior or someone you do not know; a name plus さん is often safer. The suffix くん is attached to a name, often for a junior or peer, and is not the same use as きみ. Compare 君 and 含; their components differ: 君＝尹＋口；含＝今＋口.

Try it yourself

  1. Write the reading of 君 in hiragana.

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    きみ

    君 is read きみ and means you (informal).

  2. Write the reading of 君主 in hiragana.

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    くんしゅ

    君主 is read くんしゅ and means monarch; ruler.

  3. Fill in the missing kanji: 田中＿（たなかくん）.

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    君

    君 completes 田中君, read たなかくん; the word means Tanaka with the suffix 君.

Use it today

Cover the table, write 君 from memory, then read 君 and 君主 aloud and make a sentence with one of them.