水 — Kanji Meaning, Readings & Example Words (JLPT N5)
What it means
At its heart, 水 is simply water. You'll meet it in two roles: as the standalone noun 水 (みず, "water" — the stuff you drink), and as a building block inside compound words about water and liquids (水曜日 "Wednesday," 水泳 "swimming," 水道 "tap/water supply," 海水 "seawater"). The nice payoff is that whenever you spot 水 — or its slimmed-down radical 氵 — in an unfamiliar word, you can bet it has something to do with water, an instant head start on the meaning.
Readings
| Type | Reading | Used in |
|---|---|---|
| kun'yomi | みず | 水 (water), 飲み水 (drinking water) |
| on'yomi | スイ | 水曜日 (Wednesday), 水泳 (swimming), 水道 (tap water), 海水 (seawater) |
Here's a rule of thumb that works for most kanji, not just this one: the kun'yomi (みず) tends to show up when the kanji stands alone or in everyday native words, while the on'yomi (スイ) appears inside two-kanji compound words. So 水 by itself is みず, but 水曜日 and 水泳 switch to スイ. Spotting that pattern early will help you guess readings for kanji you haven't even studied yet.
Stroke order & radical
- Strokes: 4. Write the central vertical hook first, then the small left flick, then the two right-hand strokes — it grows out from the middle like water splashing outward.
- Radical: 水 is its own radical, the "water" radical (みず). On the left side of other kanji it gets squished into the three-drop form 氵 (さんずい, "three drops of water") — which is your clue that those kanji relate to water or liquids. You'll see it in 海 (sea), 池 (pond), and 泳 (to swim), among many others.
Recognizing that radical is genuinely useful: meet a new kanji with 氵 on the left and you can already guess it's water-adjacent.
Common words using 水
Notice the reading split in action: standalone 水 and the native compound 飲み水 take みず, while every Sino-Japanese compound (水曜日, 水泳, 水道, 海水) flips to スイ. That's the rule of thumb above, working exactly as advertised.
Example sentences
ヤッタンは毎日水をたくさん飲みます。
ヤッタンは まいにち みずを たくさん のみます。
Yattan drinks a lot of water every day.
水 standing alone — the kun'yomi みず reading.
モチは水曜日に水泳を習っています。
モチは すいようびに すいえいを ならっています。
Mochi takes swimming lessons on Wednesdays.
Two on'yomi compounds in one sentence: 水曜日 and 水泳, both スイ. A great sentence for the reading split.
先生は「この水道の水は飲めますよ」と言いました。
せんせいは「この すいどうの みずは のめますよ」と いいました。
Sensei said, 'You can drink the water from this tap.'
Both readings together: 水道 (スイ) and 水 (みず).
Quick recap
- 水 = water; just 4 strokes; it's the "water" radical itself.
- みず when it stands alone (水) or in native words (飲み水); スイ in compounds (水曜日, 水泳, 水道, 海水).
- The squished radical 氵 (さんずい) on a kanji's left hints "water/liquid" — as in 海 (sea), 池 (pond), and 泳 (swim).
Your turn
Choose the correct reading of 水 in each word.
Start the 5-question drill →Frequently asked questions
How do you read 水 in 水 vs 水曜日?
On its own, 水 is the kun'yomi みず ('water'). In 水曜日 it's the on'yomi スイ (水曜日 = すいようび, 'Wednesday'). As a rule, two-kanji compounds take the on'yomi.
How many strokes does 水 have?
水 has 4 strokes and is also the 'water' radical, which appears as 氵 (called さんずい, 'three drops of water') on the left of related kanji like 海 (sea) and 泳 (swim).
What is the 氵 radical?
氵 is the left-side form of 水, nicknamed さんずい ('three drops of water'). When you see it on a kanji, the meaning almost always involves water or liquid — for example 海 (sea), 池 (pond), and 泳 (to swim).
Is 水 used to talk about days of the week?
Yes. 水曜日 (すいようび) means 'Wednesday.' Each weekday pairs an element with 曜日, and Wednesday is the 'water day,' so 水 with its スイ reading marks it.