川 – JLPT N5 Kanji, Kanji for river, river or three-stroke river radical no 47, stream

川

Strokes: 3

Meanings: river, river or three-stroke river radical (no. 47), stream
Onyomi: セン
Kunyomi: かわ
Name Readings: か, こ, さわ
JLPT: N5
Grade: 1
Frequency: -
Kanji Writing Practice: Practice

Numbers Radicals Components

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Stroke Order

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Story

The kanji 川 comes from a simple picture of flowing water. In ancient writing, it was drawn as three lines — the streams of a river moving side by side. People used this shape to show the idea of water flowing in one direction, carving its way through the land. Over time, the image stayed almost the same, becoming the modern kanji for “river.”

Short Story

Three lines flowing downward — this kanji shows the image of a river, water moving smoothly through nature. It’s one of the simplest and oldest symbols in Japanese writing.

Mnemonic

This kanji declares: three streams flow together as one — 川 means river, the steady flow of water through the world.

Vocabulary Examples

Word	Reading	Meaning	Meta
川	かわ	river, stream	common JLPT-N3 JLPT-N5 Noun
川沿い	かわぞい	along the river, riverside	common Noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no'
川上	かわかみ	upper reaches of a river, upstream	common Noun
川岸	かわぎし	riverbank, riverside	common Noun
川幅	かわはば	width of a river	Noun
川風	かわかぜ	breeze off a river	Noun
川流れ	かわながれ	being carried away by a current	Noun
川底	かわぞこ	riverbed	Noun
河口	かこう	mouth of river, estuary	common Noun, Noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no'
川下り	かわくだり	going downstream (in a boat)	Noun

Showing up to 15 entries including the Kanji.

Example Sentences

Example #1

川で泳ぎます。

かわでおよぎます

kawa de oyogimasu

I swim in the river.

Example #2

きれいな川があります。

きれいなかわがあります

kirei na kawa ga arimasu

There is a beautiful river.

Example #3

川の水は冷たいです。

かわのみずはつめたいです

kawa no mizu wa tsumetai desu

The river water is cold.

Example #4

川の近くに公園があります。

かわのちかくにこうえんがあります

kawa no chikaku ni kouen ga arimasu

There’s a park near the river.

Example #5

この川は長いです。

このかわはながいです

kono kawa wa nagai desu

This river is long.

Example #6

川で魚を見ました。

かわでさかなをみました

kawa de sakana o mimashita

I saw fish in the river.

Example #7

川の音が聞こえます。

かわのおとがきこえます

kawa no oto ga kikoemasu

I can hear the sound of the river.

Example #8

子どもたちが川で遊んでいます。

こどもたちがかわであそんでいます

kodomotachi ga kawa de asonde imasu

Children are playing in the river.

Example #9

川のそばを歩きました。

かわのそばをあるきました

kawa no soba o arukimashita

I walked along the river.

Example #10

川に橋があります。

かわにはしがあります

kawa ni hashi ga arimasu

There is a bridge over the river.

Example #11

川の向こうに山が見えます。

かわのむこうにやまがみえます

kawa no mukou ni yama ga miemasu

You can see a mountain across the river.

Example #12

この町には大きい川があります。

このまちにはおおきいかわがあります

kono machi ni wa ookii kawa ga arimasu

There is a big river in this town.

Example #13

川で写真を撮りました。

かわでしゃしんをとりました

kawa de shashin o torimashita

I took pictures by the river.

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Kanji Info

Kanji: 川

JLPT: n5

Strokes: 3

Grade: 1

Unicode: 5DDD

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