What is the Kanji for "Now"?

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

The Japanese Kanji for "Now" is "今".

This kanji has 2 readings:

Its kunyomi reading is "Ima".

Its onyomi reading is "Kon".

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 3 parts:

The kanji "人" means "Person" and can be read as "Jin", "Nin", "Hito", and "Ri". The kanji "一" means "One" and can be read as "Ichi", "Itsu", and "Hito". And The radical "フ" means "Katakana fu" .

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

What does the kanji "今" mean in japanese?

"今" means "Now".

Japanese School Students learn this kanji in Second Grade, while foreigners may learn this kanji in preparation for the JLPT N5 exam.

Here are some words that use this kanji:

今: "Now". The adverb '今 (いま)' means 'now'. It is used to indicate the present moment or a time that is happening immediately. It can be used to describe an action or state that is currently taking place. For example: I am studying now - (私は今勉強しています). He is coming now - (彼は今来ています).

今月: "This month". The Japanese noun '今月 (こんげつ)' means 'this month'. It refers to the current month that is ongoing. '今月' is often used in contexts where you want to specify the current time period, such as in sentences like: I was born this month - (私は今月生まれました). I will travel in this month - (私は今月旅行に行きます).

今週: "This week". The noun '今週 (こんしゅう)' means 'this week'. It refers to the current week we are in, as opposed to last week or next week. It is commonly used to indicate the time period of the current seven-day cycle. For example: I have an important meeting this week - (今週は重要な会議があります). I'm going on vacation this week - (今週は休暇に行きます).

今晩: "Evening". The Japanese noun '今晩 (こんばん)' refers to the evening or the time of day from around 6pm to midnight. It is commonly used to ask about or describe a plan or activity happening during the evening hours. For example: What are you doing tonight? - (今晩何をしますか). Good evening - (今晩は).

今日: "Today". The noun '今日 (きょう)' refers to the present day, the day that is happening now. It can be used to talk about events, activities or plans that are occurring on the current date. For example: Today is my birthday - (今日は私の誕生日です). What are you doing today? - (今日は何をしますか?)

今まで: "Up until now" or "So far". The adverb '今まで (いままで)' means 'up until now' or 'so far'. It is used to express that something has been the case or has been happening up to the present moment. It can be used to describe actions, states, or situations that have been ongoing or persistent. For example: I have been studying Japanese up until now - (今まで日本語を勉強してきた). So far the weather has been nice - (今まで天気が良かった).

今度: "Next". The Japanese noun '今度 (こんど)' means 'next'. It is used to refer to the next instance or occurrence of something. For example: I'll see you next time - (私は次会うのを楽しみにしています), Next month we are going on a trip - (来月私たちは旅行に行きます)

今後: "Future". The noun '今後 (こんご)' means 'future'. It refers to the time period after the present moment. This word is used to talk about upcoming events, plans, or the time ahead. For example: In the future, I want to travel more - (今後は、もっと旅行したいと思います). The future looks bright - (今後は明るい)

今回: "This time". The noun '今回 (こんかい)' means 'this time'. It refers to the current, present or immediate occasion or instance of something happening. It is commonly used to refer to a specific event, occurrence or situation that is taking place at the moment. For example: This time the meeting will be held at 5pm - (今回の会議は午後5時に行われます). We should learn from our mistakes this time - (今回の過ちから学ぶべきです).

今年: "This year". The noun '今年 (ことし)' means 'this year'. It refers to the current calendar year. It is commonly used to talk about events, activities or situations that are happening within the present calendar year. For example: This year, I plan to travel more - (今年は、もっと旅行したいと思います). It is a basic noun used in everyday Japanese conversation.

今ごろ: "Now". The noun '今ごろ (いまごろ)' means 'now'. It refers to the present time or the current moment. This word is often used to express the idea that something is happening or occurring right around the current time. For example: What are you doing now? - (今ごろ、何をしていますか). I'll be home around now - (今ごろ、家に着くでしょう).

今にも: "Any moment now". The adverb '今にも (いまにも)' means 'any moment now'. It is used to express that something is about to happen very soon. This adverb conveys a sense of immediacy or impending action. For example: He's going to arrive any moment now - (彼はすぐにでも来るだろう). The rain is about to start any moment now - (雨はいまにも降り出しそうだ).

今に: "Soon". The adverb '今に (いまに)' means 'soon'. It is used to express that something will happen in the near future. It suggests that an event or action is imminent or about to occur. For example: I will arrive soon - (今に着きます). We will see them soon - (今に彼らに会うでしょう).

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).

今更: "Now". The Japanese adverb '今更 (いまさら)' means 'now'. It is used to express a sense of belatedness or lateness, often with the nuance of something being unnecessary or unneeded at this point. For example: It's too late to complain now - (いまさら文句を言っても). I already knew that, it's not news to me now - (いまさらそんなこと知らされてもな)

今朝: "Morning". The Japanese noun '今朝 (けさ)' means 'morning'. This word is used to refer to the time of day that is within the first few hours after sunrise. It can be used in phrases like: Good morning - (今朝は。), I woke up this morning - (今朝起きました), It's a beautiful morning today - (今朝はとてもきれいです。)

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 "こ" is read as "ko". The hiragana "ん" is read as "n". The hiragana "い" is read as "i". And The hiragana "ま" is read as "ma".

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.