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Components

約 means 'promise'

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Strokes : 9 Frequency: 297 JLPT: N3 Usefulness: 3 Challenge set: 3 Grade: 4 Intermediate lesson: 21 Beginner lesson: - Begins 30 words Used in 335 words Used in 8 names Not used as a component

Jōyō (常用)

Kanji types

Kanji are classified as Jōyō (常用, common use), Jinmeiyō (人名用, used in names), or Hyōgaiji (表外字, 'outside the chart'). For more information on these types, see here.

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Jōyō 日

Jinmeiyō 柏

Hyogaiji 杖

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Common readings

On readings

On (音) readings are based on the original Chinese pronunciation of a kanji. They are typically used when a kanji appears as part of a jukugo (kanji compound).

For example, in 日本, 日 is read as に, one of the on readings.

On readings are typically written in katakana.

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ヤク

Kun

Kun readings

Kun (訓) readings are uniquely Japanese. They are typically used when a kanji is used singly as part of a Japanese conjugated verb.

For example, 行く is read as いく (to go). In this case, the く of 行く is known as 'okurigana'. In Kanshudo, okurigana are differentiated using a dark gray color (versus black for the characters that represent the reading of the kanji itself).

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promise; approximate

Additional readings

Kun つづまる to shrink つづめるつづまやか concise, brief

Components

⿰ 糸 thread 勺 ladle

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Most useful words by reading

In the most useful 10,000 words in Japanese, 約 is used 13 times, read 1 way.

Across all words in Japanese, 約 is used 324 times, read 3 ways (with 1 variation).

ヤク : 320 words FIND ALL

やくそく

約束

noun, 'suru' verb

1. promise; agreement; arrangement; one's word; contract; pact; appointment; engagement; date

2. convention; rule

(click the word to view an additional 1 meaning)

TEST

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:

For more details on Kanshudo usefulness levels and how to use them for your studies, read our comprehensive guide, How to prioritize Japanese vocabulary to study.

Kanshudo Word Usefulness Level

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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 might come up in - N5 (the first and easiest level) through to N1 (the highest). There are no official lists of JLPT vocab, so this analysis is based on past test papers.

You can use Kanshudo to study words and kanji for the JLPT. Check out our 84 collections of Japanese words by JLPT level, or our 22 collections of kanji by JLPT level.

JLPT Level

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ヤク (read as やっ) : 1 word FIND ALL

やっかん

約款

noun

agreement; stipulation; article; clause

TEST

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.

Many useful words have multiple forms, and less common forms have a badge that looks like this:

For more details on Kanshudo usefulness levels and how to use them for your studies, read our comprehensive guide, How to prioritize Japanese vocabulary to study.

Kanshudo Word Usefulness Level

Unfortunately that feature is not accessible here. Please contact support if you have any questions.

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.

You can use Kanshudo to study words and kanji for the JLPT. Check out our 84 collections of Japanese words by JLPT level, or our 22 collections of kanji by JLPT level.

JLPT Level

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つづまる : 2 words FIND ALL

つづ

約

める

ichidan verb, transitive verb

to abridge; to shorten; to economize

TEST

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.

Many useful words have multiple forms, and less common forms have a badge that looks like this:

For more details on Kanshudo usefulness levels and how to use them for your studies, read our comprehensive guide, How to prioritize Japanese vocabulary to study.

Kanshudo Word Usefulness Level

Unfortunately that feature is not accessible here. Please contact support if you have any questions.

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.

You can use Kanshudo to study words and kanji for the JLPT. Check out our 84 collections of Japanese words by JLPT level, or our 22 collections of kanji by JLPT level.

JLPT Level

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つづまやか : 1 word FIND ALL

つづま

約

やか

'na' adjective

1. concise; brief

2. humble; frugal

(click the word to view an additional 1 meaning)

TEST

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.

Many useful words have multiple forms, and less common forms have a badge that looks like this:

For more details on Kanshudo usefulness levels and how to use them for your studies, read our comprehensive guide, How to prioritize Japanese vocabulary to study.

Kanshudo Word Usefulness Level

Unfortunately that feature is not accessible here. Please contact support if you have any questions.

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.

You can use Kanshudo to study words and kanji for the JLPT. Check out our 84 collections of Japanese words by JLPT level, or our 22 collections of kanji by JLPT level.

JLPT Level

Unfortunately that feature is not accessible here. Please contact support if you have any questions.

Quick links

QUICK SEARCH WORD SEARCH KANJI SEARCH COMPONENT SEARCH Find kanji that refer to 約

More information

Wiktionary ⇗ | Unicode.org ⇗ | Google Japan ⇗

Additional data

Henshall: 621 (originally: 591) Joy o' Kanji : 591 Key to Kanji: 1017

Cascading kanji view

約

ヤク promise; approximate

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勺

シャク ladle

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勹

wrap

丶

dot

糸

シいと thread

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約 means 'promise'

Cascading kanji view