間 — Kanji Meaning, Readings & Example Words (JLPT N5)
What it means
At its heart, 間 is about a gap or interval — the space between two things. That "space" can be physical (the room between walls, as in 居間 "living room") or temporal (the stretch between two moments, as in 時間 "time"). You'll also meet it in the very common standalone word 間 (あいだ), meaning "between" or "during." The nice payoff is that once you know 間, a whole family of time-and-space words suddenly makes sense: 時間 "time," 一週間 "one week," 昼間 "daytime," and even 人間 "human being."
Readings
| Type | Reading | Used in |
|---|---|---|
| kun'yomi | あいだ | 間 (between, interval), AとBの間 (between A and B) |
| kun'yomi | ま | 昼間 (ひるま, daytime), 居間 (いま, living room) |
| on'yomi | カン | 時間 (time/an hour), 一週間 (one week) |
| on'yomi | ケン | 人間 (にんげん, human being) — note the voicing |
Here's a rule of thumb that works for most kanji: the kun'yomi (あいだ) tends to appear when the kanji stands alone, while the on'yomi (カン) shows up inside two-kanji compounds like 時間 or 週間. The second kun'yomi, ま, hides in a few set words like 昼間 and 居間, so it's worth memorizing those as fixed items. And watch out for 人間 — its on'yomi is ケン and the reading softens to げん (にんげん), an irregular reading you'll just learn by heart.
Stroke order & radical
- Strokes: 12, written from the outside in — build the 門 "gate" frame first (the two pillars), then write the 日 "sun" that sits in the gap.
- Radical: the radical is 門 (gate). The whole character is a lovely picture: the sun (日) seen through the gap of a gate (門) — light shining through the space between the doors. That image is exactly the meaning: the gap, the interval, the in-between.
Recognizing the 門 frame is handy: several other kanji (聞 "to hear," 開 "to open") nest something inside that same gate, so spotting the gate tells you where the "action" of the character happens.
Common words using 間
Notice the readings split in action: compounds like 時間 and 一週間 take the on'yomi カン, the lone word 間 takes あいだ, and the set words 昼間 and 居間 use the ま reading. The odd one out is 人間 (にんげん), where the on'yomi is ケン voiced to げん — a reading you simply commit to memory.
Example sentences
ヤッタンは毎日二時間日本語を勉強します。
ヤッタンは まいにち にじかん にほんごを べんきょうします。
Yattan studies Japanese for two hours every day.
時間 — the on'yomi カン reading inside a compound.
モチの家とヤッタンの家の間に公園があります。
モチの いえと ヤッタンの いえの あいだに こうえんが あります。
There is a park between Mochi's house and Yattan's house.
間 standing alone takes the kun'yomi あいだ ('between').
先生は「昼間は居間で休みましょう」と言いました。
せんせいは「ひるまは いまで やすみましょう」と いいました。
Sensei said, 'Let's rest in the living room during the daytime.'
Two ま readings together: 昼間 (ひるま) and 居間 (いま).
Quick recap
- 間 = interval / space / between; 12 strokes; radical is 門 (gate).
- あいだ when it stands alone (間 = "between"); カン in compounds (時間, 一週間).
- The reading ま hides in set words like 昼間 (ひるま) and 居間 (いま).
- Irregular alert: 人間 = にんげん (on'yomi ケン, voiced to げん).
Your turn
Choose the correct reading of 間 in each word.
Start the 5-question drill →Frequently asked questions
How do you read 間 in 時間 vs in 間 by itself?
In the compound 時間 it's the on'yomi カン (時間 = じかん, 'time/an hour'). When 間 stands alone it's the kun'yomi あいだ (間 = 'between, interval'). As a rule, two-kanji compounds take the on'yomi.
Why is 人間 read にんげん and not にんかん?
人間 uses the second on'yomi ケン, and it softens (voices) to げん, giving にんげん, 'human being.' It's an irregular reading worth memorizing as a single word.
When is 間 read ま?
The reading ま appears in a small set of fixed words, most commonly 昼間 (ひるま, 'daytime') and 居間 (いま, 'living room'). Learn these as whole words rather than trying to predict ま.
How many strokes does 間 have, and what's its radical?
間 has 12 strokes. Its radical is 門 ('gate'), and the character pictures the sun (日) shining through the gap of a gate — exactly the idea of an interval or space between.