JLPT N5 Exam Flashcards

Q: What is JLPT N5 and who administers it?

JLPT N5 is the easiest of the five Japanese-Language Proficiency Test levels, jointly administered by the Japan Foundation (overseas) and Japan Educational Exchanges and Services (JEES) inside Japan. It certifies that candidates can understand basic Japanese in everyday situations.

Q: What score do I need to pass JLPT N5?

You need a total score of at least 80 out of 180, AND at least 38 out of 120 on the Language Knowledge + Reading section, AND at least 19 out of 60 on Listening. All three conditions must be satisfied simultaneously.

Q: How many questions are on JLPT N5 and how long is it?

The exam has approximately 100 four-option multiple-choice items split across three timed sections: Language Knowledge (Vocabulary) 20 minutes, Language Knowledge (Grammar) + Reading 40 minutes, and Listening 30 minutes, for 90 minutes of active test time with breaks between sections.

Q: What Japanese ability does passing JLPT N5 prove?

Passing N5 demonstrates the ability to read hiragana, katakana, and approximately 100 basic kanji, understand simple sentences with approximately 800 words of vocabulary, and follow slow, simple conversations about everyday topics such as greetings, directions, shopping, and time.

Q: When is JLPT N5 offered in 2026?

In 2026 the JLPT is held on Sunday 6 July 2026 and Sunday 7 December 2026 in Japan. Some overseas cities offer only one of the two dates; check the official JLPT site (jlpt.jp) for your city's schedule and registration window.

Q: Does JLPT N5 have any writing or speaking components?

No. The JLPT is entirely multiple-choice (four options per question) at every level. There are no writing, speaking, or open-ended sections; all answers are marked on an OMR answer sheet using an HB pencil.

Question 1

山 (やま)

Accepted Answer

Kun-yomi やま means 'mountain'; the on-yomi サン appears in 富士山 (ふじさん, Mt. Fuji) and 山下 (やました, surname). Pictograph of three peaks; contrast with 川 (かわ, river), which shows flowing water between banks.

Question 2

水 (みず)

Accepted Answer

Kun-yomi みず ('water'); on-yomi すい appears in 水曜日 (すいようび, Wednesday). One of the five N5 element kanji (火/水/木/土/金). Don't confuse with 氷 (こおり, ice), which adds a stroke of water at the top.

Question 3

火 (ひ)

Accepted Answer

Kun-yomi ひ ('fire'); on-yomi か appears in 火曜日 (かようび, Tuesday). Pictograph of flames; pairs with 水 (water) and 木 (tree) as the elementary-element kanji set tested in day-of-week questions.

Question 4

木 (き)

Accepted Answer

Kun-yomi き ('tree'); on-yomi もく in 木曜日 (もくようび, Thursday). The kanji doubles inside 林 (はやし, grove, two trees) and triples inside 森 (もり, forest, three trees) — a productive radical that builds related words.

Question 5

毎 (まい~)

Accepted Answer

Prefix meaning 'every-': 毎日 (まいにち, every day), 毎週 (まいしゅう, every week), 毎年 (まいとし, every year), 毎月 (まいつき, every month). The kanji that follows determines the unit; don't confuse 毎日 (day) with 毎月 (month) in time-expression questions.

Question 6

右 / 左 (みぎ / ひだり)

Accepted Answer

Right (右) and left (左), heavily tested in N5 directions listening. 右 keeps the 'mouth' component under the hand; 左 keeps the 'craft' component. Listen carefully for which one a route-giving dialogue names.

Question 7

人 (ひと / ジン / ニン)

Accepted Answer

Kun-yomi ひと ('person'); on-yomi ジン/ニン in 日本人 (にほんじん, Japanese person) and 三人 (さんにん, three people). Visually distinct from 入 (はいる, to enter) — note the longer left stroke in 入 and the shorter, capped shape in 人.

Question 8

雨 vs 雷

Accepted Answer

雨 (あめ, rain) is a single pictograph of rain falling; 雷 (かみなり, lightning) stacks the 'rain' radical (雨) above 田 (rice field). Shared radicals cluster N5 kanji — recognize the top radical first, then read the lower component.

Question 9

家 vs 休

Accepted Answer

家 (いえ, house) uses the 'roof' radical うかんむり over 豕 (pig, historical); 休 (やすむ, to rest) uses the 'person' radical イ beside 木 (tree, a person leaning on a tree). Visually similar characters are common distractors in orthography questions.

Question 10

電話 (でんわ)

Accepted Answer

Compound kanji for 'telephone': 電 (electric) + 話 (talk/conversation). N5 compounds combine two known characters; learning each component's meaning lets you guess the compound. 同系の語: 電気 (でんき, electricity), 会話 (かいわ, conversation).

Question 11

は (topic marker, pronounced 'wa')

Accepted Answer

Marks the topic of the sentence: 「わたしはがくせいです」(I am a student). Pronounced 'wa' but written with the hiragana は; sets what the sentence is about. Distinct from が (subject/new information) — は highlights known background, が introduces new info.

Question 12

が (subject marker)

Accepted Answer

Marks the grammatical subject or new information: 「だれがいますか」「たなかさんがいます」. Required with existence verbs あります/います; also used in preference/skill patterns like 「すしがすきです」 and in wh-questions.

Question 13

を (direct-object marker, pronounced 'o')

Accepted Answer

Marks the noun a transitive verb acts on: 「コーヒーをのみます」(I drink coffee). Pronounced 'o' but written を; appears nowhere except as a particle. Don't confuse with お (polite prefix on verbs/nouns like おちゃ, おすし).

Question 14

に (specific time)

Accepted Answer

Marks a specific clock time, day, or date: 「６じにおきます」(I wake up at 6). Skip に with relative time words like きょう (today), あした (tomorrow), まいにち (every day) — these take no particle. Absolute times use に.

Question 15

に (location & direction)

Accepted Answer

Two roles: place of existence with あります/います「あそこにあります」(it is over there), and destination with motion verbs「がっこうにいきます」(I go to school). Same particle, decided by the verb — existence verbs take location-of-being, motion verbs take destination.

Question 16

で (means / location of action)

Accepted Answer

Two roles: means or instrument「バスでいきます」(go by bus) and place of action「こうえんであそびます」(play at the park). Distinct from に (destination) — で focuses on how or where the action happens, not the endpoint.

Question 17

の (possessive / noun-linker)

Accepted Answer

Links two nouns: 「わたしのほん」(my book), 「日本のたべもの」(Japanese food). Shows possession or modification; never terminates a clause, so the next noun must follow. Chainable: 「わたしのともだちのかのじょ」(my friend's girlfriend).

Question 18

Verb groups I / II / III

Accepted Answer

Group I (五段/u-ending): のむ, いく, かく, まがる. Group II (一段/ru-ending): たべる, みる, おきる. Group III: する (する-verbs like べんきょうする) and くる. Conjugation rules differ per group, so identify the group before conjugating.

Question 19

te-form (〜て)

Accepted Answer

Links sequential actions: 「パンをたべて、コーヒーをのみます」(eat bread then drink coffee). Also the base for 〜てください (request), 〜ている (ongoing), 〜てもいい (permission). Group I te-forms vary by final kana (のむ→のんで, いく→いって, exception); Group II simply drops る → て.

Question 20

Past tense (ました / ませんでした)

Accepted Answer

Polite past affirmative: ます → ました (drank = のみました). Polite past negative: ません → ませんでした (did not drink = のみませんでした). Copula です past is でした; past negative is ではありませんでした / じゃありませんでした.

Question 21

Negative form (ません / 〜ない)

Accepted Answer

Polite verb negative: のみません (I don't drink). い-adjective negative: drop い → くない (おもしろくない, not interesting). The pattern まだ + 〜ていません means 'haven't done it yet' (まだたべていません), heavily tested at N5.

Question 22

〜ている (ongoing / state)

Accepted Answer

Marks ongoing action or current state: 「あめがふっています」(it is raining), 「ともだちがまっています」(a friend is waiting). Formed with te-form + いる; N5 listening tests it for weather and waiting scenes. Some verbs (know, have) take 〜ている for a state, not action.

Question 23

Potential form (can do)

Accepted Answer

Group II adds られる (たべられる, can eat); Group I shifts final -u to -eru (のむ→のめる, can drink); くる→こられる. Also expressed periphrastically with 「〜ことができます」(できる = can do). N5 tests recognition more than production.

Question 24

い-adjective

Accepted Answer

Ends in い and attaches directly to です: 「たかいです」(it's expensive). Negative drops い → くない: 「たかくないです」(not expensive). Past: 〜かった (たかかった). N5 examples: おもしろい, たかい, おおきい, ちいさい, わかい, あたらしい.

Question 25

な-adjective

Accepted Answer

Ends in な before a noun: すき (好き), じょうず (上手), べんり (便利), しずか (静か). Drops な before です: 「すきです」. Add な when modifying a noun directly: 「すきなたべもの」(liked food). Polite negation: じゃありません / ではありません.

Question 26

あまり + negative

Accepted Answer

あまり (not very) + negative = 'not very': 「あまりおもしろくないです」(not very interesting). Softens negative answers — the natural reply to いいえ on a quality question. Don't use あまり with an affirmative sentence.

Question 27

Comparison: A は B より ___

Accepted Answer

「このほんは あのほんより たかいです」= this book is more expensive than that book. より marks the standard of comparison; the topic (は) is the thing being compared. No particle between adjective and です.

Question 28

いい / よい (good)

Accepted Answer

いい is the casual spoken form of よい. Conjugates from the よ- stem, not い-: negative よくない, past よかった, te-form よくて. Don't apply normal い-adjective rules — 'よかったです' is correct, 'いかったです' is wrong.

Question 29

〜てください (polite request)

Accepted Answer

Polite request formed with te-form + ください: 「すわってください」(please sit). Softer than direct commands; standard for N5 dialogue requests. The negative version 〜ないでください means 'please don't,' and the permission ask 〜てもいいですか means 'may I?'

Question 30

〜てもいいですか (asking permission)

Accepted Answer

Permission pattern: 「たばこをすってもいいですか」(may I smoke?). Reply いいですよ (yes, fine) or すみません、だめです / きんえんです (no, sorry). N5 listening tests both the question and the reply — match the refusal to the reason given.

Question 31

〜ましょう / 〜ましょうか

Accepted Answer

Volitional: 「いきましょう」(let's go) — suggests joint action. 〜ましょうか offers to do something for the listener: 「もちましょうか」(shall I carry it?). Both formed from the ます-stem + ましょう; the か version invites a yes/no answer.

Question 32

〜ないでください (polite negative request)

Accepted Answer

Asks someone not to do something: 「すわらないでください」(please don't sit). Formed with the plain negative (〜ない) + でください. Softer than direct prohibition; tested in 'no smoking / no entry' signage and rules-in-public-place dialogues.

Question 33

Conditional: なら / たら

Accepted Answer

なら = 'if (it's the case that)': 「てんきがいいなら、いきましょう」(if the weather is good, let's go). たら = 'when/if (event happens)': 「あめがふったら、いきません」(if it rains, I won't go). なら takes a known condition as topic; たら hypothesizes the event.

Question 34

さい (歳, age counter)

Accepted Answer

Counter for years of age: 「にじゅうさんさいです」(23 years old). Used for any age. Written 歳 in formal text; hiragana さい is also accepted. Question word: なんさいですか (how old are you?).

Question 35

ひき / ぴき / びき (small-animal counter)

Accepted Answer

Counter for small animals: いぬが ３びき (3 dogs). Sound changes by number: いっぴき (1), にひき (2), さんびき (3), ろっぴき (6), はっぴき (8). Don't use for people (use にん) or for large animals (use とう).

Question 36

かい (階, building-floor counter)

Accepted Answer

Counter for building floors: 「にかいにあります」(it's on the 2nd floor). Sound shifts: いっかい (1F), にかい (2F), ろっかい (6F), はっかい (8F). N5 listening often tests this in elevator and directions dialogues; check whether きかい (machine) is a distractor.

Question 37

〜つ (native Japanese counter)

Accepted Answer

General counter for items without a specific counter: 「みっつ」(3 items), 「ふたつ」(2), 「よっつ」(4). Used for apples, bags, generic objects. Native readings 1-9: ひとつ, ふたつ, みっつ, よっつ, いつつ, むっつ, ななつ, やっつ, ここのつ; 10 is とお.

Question 38

えん (円, currency counter)

Accepted Answer

Japanese currency: 「150えん」(150 yen). No particle needed; えん follows the number directly. The same kanji 円 also means 'round/circle.' N5 shopping questions test arithmetic: りんご 150えん × ２こ + バナナ 80えん × ３ほん = 540えん.

Question 39

毎日 / 毎朝 / 毎週

Accepted Answer

まいにち (every day), まいあさ (every morning), まいしゅう (every week). 毎 + time word = 'every-'. These are relative-time expressions and take no particle: 「まいにちコーヒーをのみます」(I drink coffee every day). Compare まいげつ (every month) vs まいとし (every year).

Question 40

曜日 (ようび, days of the week)

Accepted Answer

げつようび (Mon), かようび (Tue), すいようび (Wed), もくようび (Thu), きんようび (Fri), どようび (Sat), にちようび (Sun). Each named for a celestial body/element — Moon, Fire (Mars), Water (Mercury), Wood (Jupiter), Metal/Gold (Venus), Earth (Saturn), Sun.

Question 41

ごぜん / ごご (AM / PM)

Accepted Answer

ごぜん (before noon, AM) and ごご (after noon, PM) precede the clock time: 「ごご６じ」(6 PM). Distinct from よる (night) and あさ (morning), which are time-of-day nouns used without clock numerals. N5 listening tests 「ごぜん９じ」vs「ごご９じ」 distractors.

Question 42

おはようございます

Accepted Answer

Formal morning greeting, used before about 10-11 AM. Casual form おはよう with close peers/family. N5 listening quick-response section tests it in workplace/school settings; don't use it in the afternoon — switch to こんにちは.

Question 43

いただきます / ごちそうさまでした

Accepted Answer

Meal phrases: いただきます before eating (gratitude for food); ごちそうさまでした after finishing. Fixed pair — don't reverse them. いただきます is also the humble verb for 'receive,' so the same phrase appears in receiving-items contexts.

Question 44

けっこうです (context-dependent)

Accepted Answer

Two meanings: declining an offer「けっこうです」= 'no, thank you, I'm fine'; approving「もうけっこうです」= 'that's enough.' In N5 listening, watch the context — the same phrase can yield opposite outcomes. The hint is often a following いいえ or a hand gesture.

Question 45

どういたしまして

Accepted Answer

Standard response to ありがとうございます / ありがとうございました ('You're welcome'). N5 listening quick-response (即応) section tests this exchange; the slightly casual いいえ、どういたしまして is also common. Don't use it for すみません (use いいえ or だいじょうぶです).

Question 46

Listening: task-based (絵選択)

Accepted Answer

Listen to a short dialogue, choose the matching picture or action. Focus on the verb (のる, かう, たべる) and its object; distractors usually swap one. Watch for the negative 〜ません — it often flips the correct answer.

Question 47

Listening: key-point (要点)

Accepted Answer

Identify one specific fact: time, price, location, or count. Numbers are the most common distractors — ３じ１５ふん vs ３じ５０ふん, or １５０えん vs １１０えん. Listen for ふん vs ごふん, long vs short vowels, and the final confirming repetition.

Question 48

Listening: quick response (即応)

Accepted Answer

Choose the natural reply to a short utterance. Memorize set exchanges: ありがとうございます→どういたしまして; いい てんきですね→そうですね; すみません、おそくなりました→だいじょうぶですよ; いただきます→(どうぞ). The reply must match the function (thanks, apology, greeting, offer).

Question 49

Reading: short passage (~80 chars)

Accepted Answer

A short descriptive text plus one question. Skim for the topic word and the descriptor; the answer restates the main adjective or fact (せまい but きれい, あかるい). Distractors pick a minor detail and exaggerate it or flip its polarity.

Question 50

Reading: information retrieval (実用文)

Accepted Answer

Notices, flyers, menus, schedules. Match the question word (いつ, どこ, いくら, なに, だれ) to the matching field in the display. For prices, compute totals (リンゴ 150えん × ２こ = 300えん) and watch the unit (こ vs ほん vs ふくろ).

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