Kanji · JLPT N5 · Level 1
五 five
- Meaning
- five
- On reading
- ゴ
- Kun reading
- いつ(つ)
Memory hook
A line, a zigzag, a line. The zigzag in the middle is a hand with its fingers folded over: five. ゴ in compounds and on its own, いつ(つ) when you are counting things.
Words that use 五
五つ
いつつ
five things
五分
ごふん
5 minutes
How to write 五
Stroke order · 4 strokes
1
2
3
4
- 1. The horizontal across the top.
- 2. The vertical through the centre.
- 3. Horizontal across the middle, then turn down on the right side.
- 4. The horizontal across the bottom.
Stroke data from KanjiVG, CC BY-SA 3.0.
General rules
- Top to bottom, left to right.
- Horizontal strokes before crossing vertical ones (十 = horizontal, then vertical).
- Outside before inside - but close a box last (口).
- A vertical that passes all the way through comes last (中).
- Left-falling diagonal before right-falling (大).
五 is taught on day 2 of the kanji course, alongside 四 六, with two writing passes and a short quiz.