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JLPT N5 vocabulary

Quick answer

N5 vocabulary is beginner Japanese for daily life: people, food, time, places, and simple actions, written in hiragana, katakana, and basic kanji. This page lists 60 common words taken from NihonNest's N5 sets. The full path in the app has 745 words.

What N5 vocabulary covers

At N5 you are reading typical expressions and short sentences, not essays. The words you need first are the ones in a classroom, a kitchen, a shop, and a simple introduction. The official level summary describes that reading and listening job. It does not publish a fixed word list, so the 60 words below are NihonNest's own N5 cards, not an official inventory.

Each line is the card as it exists in the app: the kanji when the card has one, the kana reading, romaji, and the English meaning. A dash means the card is written in kana only. The four themes are four packs already in the N5 path: food, people, time, and places.

Food and meals

  • Kanji —. Kana りんご

    Romaji ringo. English apple

  • Kanji 野菜. Kana やさい

    Romaji yasai. English vegetables

  • Kanji 果物. Kana くだもの

    Romaji kudamono. English fruit

  • Kanji 牛乳. Kana ぎゅうにゅう

    Romaji gyuunyuu. English milk

  • Kanji —. Kana ジュース

    Romaji juusu. English juice

  • Kanji 朝ごはん. Kana あさごはん

    Romaji asagohan. English breakfast

  • Kanji 昼ごはん. Kana ひるごはん

    Romaji hirugohan. English lunch

  • Kanji 晩ごはん. Kana ばんごはん

    Romaji bangohan. English dinner

  • Kanji —. Kana おいしい

    Romaji oishii. English delicious

  • Kanji 甘い. Kana あまい

    Romaji amai. English sweet

  • Kanji —. Kana レストラン

    Romaji resutoran. English restaurant

  • Kanji 料理. Kana りょうり

    Romaji ryouri. English dish; cooking

  • Kanji 箸. Kana はし

    Romaji hashi. English chopsticks

  • Kanji 砂糖. Kana さとう

    Romaji satou. English sugar

  • Kanji 塩. Kana しお

    Romaji shio. English salt

People

  • Kanji 家族. Kana かぞく

    Romaji kazoku. English family

  • Kanji 兄. Kana あに

    Romaji ani. English (my) older brother

  • Kanji 姉. Kana あね

    Romaji ane. English (my) older sister

  • Kanji 弟. Kana おとうと

    Romaji otouto. English (my) younger brother

  • Kanji 妹. Kana いもうと

    Romaji imouto. English (my) younger sister

  • Kanji 祖父. Kana そふ

    Romaji sofu. English (my) grandfather

  • Kanji 祖母. Kana そぼ

    Romaji sobo. English (my) grandmother

  • Kanji —. Kana おじさん

    Romaji ojisan. English uncle

  • Kanji —. Kana おばさん

    Romaji obasan. English aunt

  • Kanji 彼. Kana かれ

    Romaji kare. English he; boyfriend

  • Kanji 彼女. Kana かのじょ

    Romaji kanojo. English she; girlfriend

  • Kanji 医者. Kana いしゃ

    Romaji isha. English doctor

  • Kanji 会社員. Kana かいしゃいん

    Romaji kaishain. English office worker

  • Kanji 大人. Kana おとな

    Romaji otona. English adult

  • Kanji 男の子. Kana おとこのこ

    Romaji otokonoko. English boy

Time

  • Kanji 今年. Kana ことし

    Romaji kotoshi. English this year

  • Kanji 去年. Kana きょねん

    Romaji kyonen. English last year

  • Kanji 今月. Kana こんげつ

    Romaji kongetsu. English this month

  • Kanji 毎週. Kana まいしゅう

    Romaji maishuu. English every week

  • Kanji 毎月. Kana まいつき

    Romaji maitsuki. English every month

  • Kanji 毎年. Kana まいとし

    Romaji maitoshi. English every year

  • Kanji 今朝. Kana けさ

    Romaji kesa. English this morning

  • Kanji 今晩. Kana こんばん

    Romaji konban. English this evening

  • Kanji 週末. Kana しゅうまつ

    Romaji shuumatsu. English weekend

  • Kanji 時計. Kana とけい

    Romaji tokei. English clock; watch

  • Kanji 分. Kana ふん

    Romaji fun. English minute

  • Kanji 春. Kana はる

    Romaji haru. English spring

  • Kanji 夏. Kana なつ

    Romaji natsu. English summer

  • Kanji 秋. Kana あき

    Romaji aki. English autumn

  • Kanji 冬. Kana ふゆ

    Romaji fuyu. English winter

Places and transport

  • Kanji —. Kana バス

    Romaji basu. English bus

  • Kanji —. Kana タクシー

    Romaji takushii. English taxi

  • Kanji 地下鉄. Kana ちかてつ

    Romaji chikatetsu. English subway

  • Kanji 空港. Kana くうこう

    Romaji kuukou. English airport

  • Kanji 切符. Kana きっぷ

    Romaji kippu. English ticket

  • Kanji 道. Kana みち

    Romaji michi. English road; street

  • Kanji 橋. Kana はし

    Romaji hashi. English bridge

  • Kanji 公園. Kana こうえん

    Romaji kouen. English park

  • Kanji 店. Kana みせ

    Romaji mise. English shop

  • Kanji —. Kana スーパー

    Romaji suupaa. English supermarket

  • Kanji 図書館. Kana としょかん

    Romaji toshokan. English library

  • Kanji 郵便局. Kana ゆうびんきょく

    Romaji yuubinkyoku. English post office

  • Kanji —. Kana ホテル

    Romaji hoteru. English hotel

  • Kanji 国. Kana くに

    Romaji kuni. English country

  • Kanji 町. Kana まち

    Romaji machi. English town

These 60 words are a sample. The full N5 path in the app has 745 words, in short sets you can finish in a few minutes. Start with kana, which is free, then open the word sets from Learn.

FAQ

How many N5 words are in NihonNest?

The full N5 path has 745 words. This page shows 60 of them, from the food, people, time, and places sets.

Is this the official JLPT word list?

No. The JLPT does not publish a fixed N5 word list on the pages cited here. These words are the cards in NihonNest's N5 sets. NihonNest is not affiliated with or endorsed by the JLPT.

Why do some lines have no kanji?

Some N5 cards are written in kana only, including loanwords in katakana. The kanji column is a dash on those lines. The kana column is always the reading stored on the card.

Where do I study the rest?

Create a free account and start with kana. Word sets open from Learn. Reviews of cards you have unlocked stay free.

More guides

Start free with kana

NihonNest is not affiliated with or endorsed by the JLPT. Not an official JLPT score.