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Kanji · JLPT N5 · Level 6

hear, ask

Meaning
hear, ask
On reading
Kun reading
Memory hook

耳 (ear) inside 門 (gate). A gate is a gap that sound travels through, and the ear is sitting right in it. ブン in compounds, き(く) on its own. It means both hear and ask.

Words that use 聞

to listen, ask
newspaper

How to write 聞

Stroke order · 14 strokes
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
  1. 1. Vertical.
  2. 2. Horizontal, then turn down.
  3. 3 to 4. Horizontal.
  4. 5. Vertical.
  5. 6. Vertical, ending in a hook.
  6. 7 to 9. Horizontal.
  7. 10. Vertical.
  8. 11 to 13. Horizontal.
  9. 14. Vertical.

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).

聞 is taught on day 25 of the kanji course, alongside , with two writing passes and a short quiz.