Kanji N3

絵: picture, drawing, painting

絵 is a JLPT N3 kanji meaning picture, drawing, painting, written with 12 strokes. It is read カイ, エ (on), and has no common kun reading. Children in Japan learn it in grade 2. You will see it in 絵 (え, picture) and 絵画 (かいが, painting).

絵

Meanings

  • picture
  • drawing
  • painting
  • sketch
Strokes12
JLPT levelN3
School gradeGrade 2
Frequency#895 of 2,500

On reading · Kun reading

On reading
  • カイ
  • エ

On'yomi: from Chinese, written in katakana. Used in compound words.

Kun reading
  • None in common use

Kun'yomi: native Japanese, in hiragana. The faint part is the okurigana, written in kana after the kanji.

Watch the stroke order

Every stroke in order, the live one in vermilion. Replay as often as you like.

123456789101112

Now draw it

Trace each stroke in order. Wrong direction or wrong order gets flagged right away.

1234567891011120 / 12

Your turn: draw stroke 1 of 12. Start at the dot.

Common words with 絵

The most useful words written with it, easiest first. Every other kanji in them opens its own page.

  • 絵え

    picture; drawing; painting; sketch

    JLPT N5
  • 絵画かいが

    painting; picture

    JLPT N3
  • 絵の具えのぐ

    paint; coloring materials; colors; colours

    JLPT N2
  • 油絵あぶらえ

    oil painting

    JLPT N1
  • 絵本えほん

    picture book

  • 浮世絵うきよえ

    ukiyo-e; ukiyoe; Edo-period woodblock print

  • 挿絵さしえ

    illustration (in a book, newspaper, etc.)

  • 絵巻えまき

    picture scroll

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Stroke order from KanjiVG © Ulrich Apel, CC BY-SA 3.0. Readings, meanings and words from KANJIDIC2 and JMdict, names from JMnedict, © EDRDG, CC BY-SA 4.0, and Wikidata, CC0; the Spanish meanings they lack, translated by Naraio from their English, are shared under the same licence. Example sentences from Tatoeba, CC BY 2.0 FR. JLPT lists after Jonathan Waller (tanos.co.uk), CC BY. Sentences split into words with IPADIC © NAIST and IPA, through Lindera.