What is the Kanji for "Night"?

If you are wondering what is the Japanese Kanji for "Night", you've come to the right place!

The Japanese Kanji for "Night" is "夜".

This kanji has 3 readings:

Its kunyomi readings are "Yo" and "Yoru".

Its onyomi reading is "Ya".

kunyomi readings are based on the pronunciation of native Japanese words, and onyomi readings are based on the Chinese pronunciation of the character.

If you visually breakdown this kanji, you can see is made up of 4 parts:

The radical "亠" means "Lid" . The radical "亻" means "Person" . The radical "夂" means "Late" . And The radical "丶" means "Dot" .

Now, let's make sure you understand this kanji the other way around too.

What does the kanji "夜" mean in japanese?

"夜" means "Night".

Japanese School Students learn this kanji in Second Grade, while foreigners may learn this kanji in preparation for the JLPT N4 exam.

Here are some words that use this kanji:

夜: "Night". The Japanese noun '夜 (よる)' means 'night'. It refers to the period of darkness between sunset and sunrise. This word is commonly used to describe the time of day when the sun has set and the sky is dark. For example: It's night time - (夜です). We stayed up late into the night - (私たちは夜遅くまで起きていた).

今夜: "Tonight". The Japanese noun '今夜 (こんや)' means 'tonight'. It refers to the current night or the night of the same day. This word is commonly used to indicate a specific time frame, usually in the evening or during the nighttime hours. For example: I'm going out tonight - (今夜出かけます). Let's have dinner tonight - (今夜夕食を食べましょう).

夜中: "Midnight". The Japanese noun '夜中 (よなか)' refers to the middle of the night, around 12am. It is used to indicate a specific time period during the night when it is very late and most people are asleep. For example: I woke up in the middle of the night - (夜中に目を覚ました). The store is open 24 hours, even at midnight - (その店は夜中でも開いている).

昨夜: "Last night". The noun '昨夜 (さくや)' refers to the night before the present day, or the previous night. It is used to indicate a specific time in the past, usually the night preceding the current day. For example: I went to bed early last night - (昨夜は早く寝ました). He returned home late last night - (彼は昨夜遅く帰ってきました).

深夜: "Late night". The noun '深夜 (しんや)' means 'late night'. It refers to the very late hours of the night, typically between midnight and dawn. This word is often used to describe activities or events that take place during this time period, such as working late, socializing, or travel. For example: I arrived home in the late night - (私は深夜に家に着きました). The streets are empty in the late night - (深夜の街は人気がない).

夜空: "Night sky". The noun '夜空 (よぞら)' refers to the sky at night. It is used to describe the appearance of the sky during the evening or nighttime hours, often when the stars and moon are visible. This word can be used to evoke a sense of beauty, tranquility, or wonder. For example: The night sky was filled with twinkling stars - (夜空は輝く星々で満ちていた). On a clear night, the night sky is breathtaking - (晴れた夜には、夜空は息をのむほど美しい).

夜明け: "Dawn". The noun '夜明け (よあけ)' refers to the time of day when the sky begins to brighten and daylight appears, marking the transition from night to day. It signifies the start of a new day. For example: The sunrise was beautiful this morning - (今朝の夜明けはきれいだった). She woke up before the dawn - (彼女は夜明けの前に起きた).

月夜: "Moonlit night". The Japanese noun '月夜 (つきよ)' refers to a 'moonlit night' - a night in which the moon is shining brightly, illuminating the surroundings. This word is often used in poetry and literature to set a serene and romantic atmosphere. For example: The beauty of the moonlit night was breathtaking - (月夜の美しさに息をのんだ). I love walking in the moonlit night - (月夜に散歩するのが大好きです).

夜更かし: "Staying up late". The Japanese verbal noun '夜更かし (よふかし)' refers to the act of staying up late at night. It implies remaining awake and active past the typical bedtime hours. This word can describe someone who habitually stays up late or a specific instance of doing so. It has a slightly negative nuance, as staying up late is often seen as unwise or unhealthy. For example: I tend to stay up late at night - (私は夜更かしする傾向があります). We stayed up late watching movies - (私たちは夜更かしをして映画を見ていました).

真夜中: "Midnight". The noun '真夜中 (まよなか)' refers to the middle of the night, or the period between 12:00 AM and 1:00 AM. It is often used to describe a time when things are very quiet and calm. For example: We arrived at the inn at midnight - (我々は真夜中にその宿に到着した). The city was silent at midnight - (真夜中、街は静まり返っていた).

夜間: "Night". The noun '夜間 (やかん)' means 'night'. It refers to the period of time between dusk and dawn, when the sun is below the horizon and it is dark outside. This word is commonly used in expressions related to activities or events that take place during the nighttime hours. For example: Night bus - (夜間バス), Night shift - (夜間勤務)

徹夜: "All-nighter". The noun '徹夜 (てつや)' means 'all-nighter'. It refers to the act of staying up throughout the entire night, typically to study, work or complete a task. It implies a dedication and persistent effort to accomplish something without resting. For example: I pulled an all-nighter to finish my project - (プロジェクトを仕上げるため徹夜した). Working an all-nighter can be tiring but sometimes necessary - (徹夜作業は疲れるが時に必要である).

To make really sure you learn this Kanji, I've prepared an interactive lesson for you. You are going to learn the readings and meanings of this kanji.

But first, you need to know a little bit about Hiragana and Katakana.

Hiragana and katakana are japanese syllabaries, this means that each character represents a syllable.

This are the characters you need to know for this lesson:

The hiragana "よ" is read as "yo". The hiragana "や" is read as "ya". And The hiragana "る" is read as "ru".

Heres a quick tutorial on how to use it. You'll be asked three type of questions: meaning, reading, and writing.

For meanings questions all you have to do is type the english meaning. If there is more than one meaning, you have to include them all in your answer separating them by commas (,).

For Reading questions you have to type the reading in romaji (roman letters, our normal alphabet) and it'll be automatically converted to hiragana if necessary. If there is more than one reading, you have to include them all in your answer separating them by commas (,).

For Writing questions some options will appear and all you have to do is select the correct ones.