JLPT N5 words, grouped for daily use

JLPT N5 words feel less distant when you can connect them to your own day. A friend. A train. A glass of water. This page gives you a grouped selection from the Lock In Japanese deck, with kana, romaji, and English beside each word.

A selection from the app's deck

The bundled vocabulary deck contains 669 entries marked N5. The 40 words below come from that deck. This is a starting selection, not the whole deck or an official exhaustive exam list. The app also has a separate kana deck; those individual script entries are not counted here.

The word forms, kana readings, and English meanings match the vocabulary deck. Romaji below transliterates those kana readings for readers still learning the script. It is a temporary reading aid. Return your eyes to the kana whenever you can, so the letters do not become the only part you recognise.

For the broader routine, read JLPT N5 in your pocket. Then choose one group here. A small group you revisit is more useful than a long list you read once and close.

The deck credits the Electronic Dictionary Research and Development Group for readings derived from JMdict and KANJIDIC2. This grouped selection adds romaji and uses that adapted reading material under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Numbers without a fixed order

Word	Kana	Romaji	English
一	いち	ichi	one
二	に	ni	two
三	さん	san	three
四	し	shi	four
五	ご	go	five
六	ろく	roku	six
七	しち	shichi	seven
八	はち	hachi	eight
九	きゅう	kyū	nine
十	じゅう	jū	ten

Say each reading while you look at the kana. Then cover the reading column and choose a number out of order. Counting from the beginning can hide a gap: you may remember the sequence but hesitate when one written number appears alone. Give each entry its own turn.

These are the readings stored for these particular entries. They do not cover every way a number can sound in Japanese. Dates and counted objects need their own practice. Keep that practice separate from learning the entries on this page, rather than assuming one reading fits every sentence.

People you already know

Word	Kana	Romaji	English
私	わたし	watashi	I, me
友達	ともだち	tomodachi	friend
先生	せんせい	sensei	teacher
学生	がくせい	gakusei	student
父	ちち	chichi	my father
母	はは	haha	my mother

The deck has more than one entry written 私. This table uses the entry whose kana is わたし. A written form can have more than one reading, so the kana column is part of the word, not an optional note beside it.

Think of a real person for each entry. Say the reading, then recall the meaning without looking. The parent entries here mean my father and my mother. Keep that detail rather than reducing each to a loose English label. Short glosses still carry information about how a word is used.

Time words for an ordinary week

Word	Kana	Romaji	English
今日	きょう	kyō	today
明日	あした	ashita	tomorrow
昨日	きのう	kinō	yesterday
毎日	まいにち	mainichi	every day
朝	あさ	asa	morning
夜	よる	yoru	night

Meet the morning word in the morning. Return to the night word later. You can use the time around you as a prompt without writing a complicated sentence. Look at the word first, recall its sound, and only then check the kana.

The long vowels in kyō and kinō matter. The mark over the vowel shows length in this romaji style. Kana gives you the underlying reading. Listen as well as looking, and avoid treating the English meaning as the whole entry. You want to recognise the sound when the written word is absent.

Actions you can picture

Word	Kana	Romaji	English
食べる	たべる	taberu	to eat
飲む	のむ	nomu	to drink
見る	みる	miru	to see, to watch
聞く	きく	kiku	to listen, to ask
読む	よむ	yomu	to read
書く	かく	kaku	to write
行く	いく	iku	to go
来る	くる	kuru	to come

These entries give the deck's basic verb forms. A sentence may use a different ending. Begin by recognising the word and its reading, then learn the forms inside sentences. A list can help you find the starting word; it does not replace practice with grammar.

Look closely at the kana after each kanji. Those parts belong to the written word too. Do not learn only the large character and ignore the ending. On a second pass, cover the English column and recall the action. On a third, cover the word column and try to remember the form.

Food and places you can imagine

Word	Kana	Romaji	English
水	みず	mizu	water
お茶	おちゃ	ocha	tea
御飯	ごはん	gohan	cooked rice, meal
パン	パン	pan	bread
卵	たまご	tamago	egg
家	いえ	ie	house
学校	がっこう	gakkō	school
駅	えき	eki	train station
店	みせ	mise	shop
電車	でんしゃ	densha	train

Some words use kanji; bread here uses katakana. Keep the spelling in the table rather than rewriting every entry in a single script. Learning the form you will meet is part of learning the word. Kana can still help you read it.

Choose a few objects or places from your day and connect them to these entries. A station sign or a cup of tea can be a reason to recall something you learned. If you cannot recall it, check the table and return later. The aim is a usable connection, not an uninterrupted run of correct answers.

Make the next visit small

Choose four or five entries. Read the word, kana, and meaning together. Hide the English and ask what the word means. Then hide the written word and try to recall it from the meaning. Finish while the group still feels manageable. Return before taking another group.

Lock-screen learning describes how a word can meet you between longer study sessions. Those glances make it familiar; your recall attempt shows what you can retrieve. Keep both in your routine.

Before choosing a tool for that routine, read how to choose a Japanese flashcards app. Check how it handles kana, kanji, audio, and returning to older words. This selection is enough for a first day. Tomorrow can begin with the same words.