月 — Kanji Reference

月 (moon, month): 4 strokes, JLPT N5. On: ゲツ、ガツ. Kun: つき.

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月

Property Value
Meaning moon, month
Strokes 4
JLPT Level N5
On-reading (音読み) ゲツ、ガツ
Kun-reading (訓読み) つき
Radical 月 (つき) - U+6708

Stroke Order

The stroke order for 月 follows the standard rule of top-to-bottom and left-to-right. Note the "hook" (hane) at the end of the second stroke.

  1. Stroke 1: The vertical line on the left, slightly curved inward.
  2. Stroke 2: The top horizontal line, turning down to form a vertical line with a small hook at the bottom.
  3. Stroke 3: The first horizontal line inside the box.
  4. Stroke 4: The second horizontal line inside the box.

Radical Analysis

The kanji 月 is a pictograph representing the crescent moon. It is its own radical (部首). When used as a component in other kanji (like 服 or 期), it is often called nikuzuki (肉月), where it represents "flesh" or "body parts," though this is a separate historical evolution from the "moon" character.

Mnemonic

Imagine the kanji as a crescent moon hanging in the night sky. The two horizontal lines inside represent the "craters" or "shadows" visible on the surface of the moon when you look up at it on a clear night.

On-readings (音読み) with Examples

ゲツ (Getsu)

Word Reading Romaji English
月曜日 げつようび getsuyōbi Monday
先月 せんげつ sengetsu Last month
月末 げつまつ getsumatsu End of the month

ガツ (Gatsu)

Word Reading Romaji English
一月 いちがつ ichigatsu January
何月 なんがつ nangatsu What month
今月 こんげつ kongetsu This month

Kun-readings (訓読み) with Examples

つき (Tsuki)

Word Reading Romaji English
月 つき tsuki Moon
三日月 みかづき mikazuki Crescent moon

JLPT N5 Words Using 月

Word Reading Romaji English JLPT
月 つき tsuki Moon N5
月曜日 げつようび getsuyōbi Monday N5
一月 いちがつ ichigatsu January N5
二月 にがつ nigatsu February N5
三月 さんがつ sangatsu March N5
四月 しがつ shigatsu April N5
五月 ごがつ gogatsu May N5
六月 ろくがつ rokugatsu June N5
七月 しちがつ shichigatsu July N5
八月 はちがつ hachigatsu August N5
九月 くがつ kugatsu September N5
十月 じゅうがつ jūgatsu October N5
十一月 じゅういちがつ jūichigatsu November N5
十二月 じゅうにがつ jūnigatsu December N5
今月 こんげつ kongetsu This month N5
先月 せんげつ sengetsu Last month N5
来月 らいげつ raigetsu Next month N5

Example Sentences

Japanese Reading Romaji English
今夜は月が綺麗です。 こんやはつきがきれいですね。 Konya wa tsuki ga kirei desu ne. The moon is beautiful tonight.
今日は何月ですか。 きょうはなんがつですか。 Kyō wa nangatsu desu ka. What month is it today?
来月、日本へ行きます。 らいげつ、にほんへいきます。 Raigetsu, Nihon e ikimasu. I will go to Japan next month.
月曜日は忙しいです。 げつようびはいそがしいです。 Getsuyōbi wa isogashii desu. I am busy on Mondays.
先月、新しい車を買いました。 せんげつ、あたらしいくるまをかいました。 Sengetsu, atarashii kuruma o kaimashita. I bought a new car last month.
月末は仕事が忙しいです。 げつまつはしごとがいそがしいです。 Getsumatsu wa shigoto ga isogashii desu. Work is busy at the end of the month.

Common Confusion Pairs

Kanji Reading Meaning How to distinguish
月 つき Moon/Month Has two horizontal lines inside.
日 ひ Sun/Day Has one horizontal line inside; box shape.
目 め Eye Has two horizontal lines inside, but the box is taller.

Note: 日 (Sun) and 月 (Moon) are often paired together to form the word 明日 (ashita - tomorrow), literally "bright day."

Usage Frequency Note

月 is one of the most frequently used kanji in the Japanese language. It appears in every date (months) and every week (days of the week). It is essential for daily communication, both in formal writing and casual speech.