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For details of all components and their English names, see the Component collections.
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The particles で and に can both be used as location and time indicators, and the difference between the two can sometimes be subtle.
For location, で is used to mark the location where an event occurred (ie, a focus on action). に is used to indicate object locations, destinations or directions (in the absence of a specific 'event'). For example:
がっこう
学校
で
べんきょう
勉強
しました I studied at school
がっこう
学校
に
ほん
本
がたくさんあります there are many books in school
For time, で indicates the (range of) time within which an action takes place, whereas に indicates the specific time when an action is performed. For example:
ほん
本
を３
じかん
時間
で
よ
読
み
お
終
わった I finished reading the book in three hours
ほん
本
を３
じ
時
に
よ
読
み
はじ
始
めた I began reading the book at 3 o'clock
Just as with English, sometimes these particles are roughly equivalent. In many cases, both can be translated with the English 'in', and even in Japanese, there are situations where using either can work. However, the emphasis is usually subtly different.
The following are some more subtle examples. Here, in the second example, the wall is the location where the event of writing takes place:
壁に書く write on a wall
壁で書く write at a wall
Here, the different particles imply a different object of focus in the sentence:
て
手
で
い
入
れる I put it in by hand
て
手
に
い
入
れる I put it in my hand
In this pair, the first sentence simply describes when you will perform the action, whereas the second implies that you could do it now, but instead will perform it later:
あと
後
でやります I will do it later
あと
後
にします I will do it at a later time = I will put it off till later
In this example, the に implies that the room you rented is in Kyoto, whereas the で implies that the action of renting took place in Kyoto:
きょうと
京都
に
へや
部屋
を
か
借
りた I rented a room in Kyoto
きょうと
京都
で
へや
部屋
を
か
借
りた I rented a room (while I was) in Kyoto
In this example, the English word 'in' is used in both cases. However, both English and Japanese would use word order to indicate the different emphasis:
にほん
日本
で
こめ
米
は
たか
高
いです in Japan, rice is expensive
にほん
日本
に
たか
高
い
こめ
米
があります there is expensive rice in Japan
One example that is commonly confusing for learners is the use of に with
す
住
む. Although in English we might think of 'the act of living', in Japanese it is not an action but a state of affairs, and thus takes に:
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The Kanshudo usefulness level shows you how useful a grammar point is for you to learn.
Grammar point has a Kanshudo usefulness level of
.
You can view a summary of your mastery of grammar points at different usefulness (or JLPT) levels
here.
Grammar points in our system are rated from 1 to 6, where 1 is the most useful.
A usefulness level of 1 roughly corresponds to the first level of the JLPT, level 5 - i.e., you would be expected to know this grammar if your Japanese was at JLPT 5 level. A usefulness level of 5 roughly corresponds to JLPT 1 (the highest JLPT level).
Some grammar points also have a JLPT badge, indicating they appear in standard lists of required JLPT grammar. Some useful grammar points do not have a JLPT badge. These means that you would generally be expected to know the grammar if your Japanese was at that level, but the grammar point does not appear in standardized lists (which are not necessarily comprehensive).
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You can use Quick search (accessible using the icon at the top of every page) to look up any Japanese word, kanji or grammar point, as well as to find anything on Kanshudo quickly.
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Kanshudo tracks your mastery (knowledge) of every kanji, word and grammar point in Japanese individually. In item searches (Kanji search, Word search and Grammar search), you will see a small circle with a number from 0 - 4 next to each item, where zero means 'no mastery' and 4 means 'absolute mastery'. A summary of your mastery data is displayed in your Kanji, Word and Grammar mastery wheels.
The Kanshudo kanji usefulness rating shows you how useful a kanji is for you to learn.
has a Kanshudo usefulness of , which means it is among the most useful kanji in Japanese.
is one of the 138 kana characters, denoted with a usefulness rating of K. The kana are the most useful characters in Japanese, and we recommend you thoroughly learn all kana before progressing to kanji.
All kanji in our system are rated from 1-8, where 1 is the most useful.
The 2136 Jōyō kanji have usefulness levels from 1 to 5, and are denoted with badges like this:
The 138 kana are rated with usefulness K, and have a badge like this:
The Kanshudo usefulness level shows you how useful a Japanese word is for you to learn.
has a Kanshudo usefulness level of , which means it is among the
most useful words in Japanese.
All words in our system
are rated from 1-12, where 1 is the most useful.
Words with a usefulness level of 9 or better are amongst the most useful 50,000 words in Japanese, and
have a colored badge in search results, eg:
Many useful words have multiple forms, and less common
forms have a badge that looks like this:
The JLPT (Japanese Language Proficiency Test, 日本語能力試験) is the standard test of Japanese language ability for non-Japanese.
would first come up in level
N.
Kanshudo displays a badge indicating which level of the JLPT words, kanji and grammar points might first be used in:
indicates N5 (the first and easiest level)
indicates N1 (the highest and most difficult)
You can use Kanshudo to study for the JLPT. Kanshudo usefulness levels for kanji, words and grammar points map directly to JLPT levels, so your mastery level on Kanshudo is a direct indicator of your readiness for the JLPT exams.
Kanshudo usefulness counts up from 1, whereas the JLPT counts down from 5 - so the first JLPT level, N5, is equivalent to Kanshudo usefulness level .
The JLPT vocabulary lists were compiled by Wikipedia and Tanos from past papers. Sometimes the form listed by the sources is not the most useful form. In case of doubt, we advise you to learn the Kanshudo recommended form. Words that appear in the JLPT lists in a different form are indicated with a lighter colored 'shadow' badge, like this: .
Each Joy o' Kanji essay provides unparalleled depth and insight into a single kanji, and is available as a beautifully presented PDF.
The essays are available as an optional part of a Kanshudo Pro subscription, or can be purchased separately. Once purchased, you can download an essay immediately and any number of times in the future.
The pitch accent markings show you how to pronounce a word. A line underneath a kana symbol indicates low pitch, and a line above indicates high pitch. A vertical line at the end indicates the pitch of the next sound in a sentence using the word is different to the last sound of the word. The number(s) to the right of the markings show how this pitch is represented in a Japanese dictionary.
For more information, see our comprehensive guide:
Wherever you see the green star,
you can tag any kanji, word or grammar point for future reference in your
Favorites list, which is accessible from the main menu.
You can automatically create flashcards from your Favorites,
or use Quick Study to study them any time.
Wherever you see the flashcard icon,
you can automatically create a new flashcard or view flashcard status.
Flashcards can be created for any kanji, word, grammar point or example sentence on Kanshudo.
