You’ve learned on’yomi and kun’yomi. You feel confident. Then you encounter 昨日 and try to read it as “sakubi” or “sakunichi.” A Japanese friend gently corrects you: “It’s kinou.” Wait, what?
Welcome to the world of special readings — where kanji break their own rules.
What Are Special Readings?
Japanese has two categories of “rule-breaking” kanji readings:
- 熟字訓 (jukujikun) — Compound words where the reading applies to the WHOLE word, not individual characters
- 当て字 (ateji) — Words where kanji are chosen for sound alone, ignoring meaning
Essential 熟字訓 List: Time & Date
| Kanji | Expected Reading | Actual Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 今日 | こんにち | きょう | Today |
| 昨日 | さくにち | きのう | Yesterday |
| 明日 | めいにち | あした / あす | Tomorrow |
| 今朝 | こんちょう | けさ | This morning |
| 一昨日 | いっさくにち | おととい | Day before yesterday |
| 明後日 | めいごにち | あさって | Day after tomorrow |
| 一日 | いちにち | ついたち (1st of month) | First day |
| 二十日 | にじゅうにち | はつか | 20th day |
Essential 熟字訓 List: People & Nature
| Kanji | Reading | Meaning | JLPT Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 大人 | おとな | Adult | N5 |
| 友達 | ともだち | Friend | N5 |
| 上手 | じょうず | Skillful | N5 |
| 下手 | へた | Unskillful | N5 |
| 果物 | くだもの | Fruit | N4 |
| 眼鏡 | めがね | Glasses | N3 |
| 紅葉 | もみじ | Autumn leaves | N2 |
| 雪崩 | なだれ | Avalanche | N1 |
| 時雨 | しぐれ | Late autumn rain | N1 |
| 土産 | みやげ | Souvenir | N3 |
| 素人 | しろうと | Amateur | N2 |
| 玄人 | くろうと | Expert | N1 |
| 田舎 | いなか | Countryside | N3 |
| 海女 | あま | Female pearl diver | N1 |
Common 当て字 (Ateji)
These words use kanji purely for their sounds, ignoring meaning:
| Kanji | Reading | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 珈琲 | コーヒー | Coffee | Usually written in katakana |
| 倶楽部 | クラブ | Club | From English “club” |
| 煙草 | たばこ | Tobacco/cigarette | From Portuguese “tabaco” |
| 沢山 | たくさん | A lot | Kanji chosen for sound |
| 流石 | さすが | As expected | Literary origin |
JLPT tip: The reading section (読解) loves testing jukujikun. Focus on mastering the N5-N3 list first — they appear constantly. Kanjijo’s SRS system flags these special readings automatically so you review them more often.
How to Memorize Special Readings
- Learn them as vocabulary — Don’t try to derive the reading from individual kanji. Treat the whole word as one unit.
- Use mnemonics — 大人 (otona): “Oh! Tony is all grown up!”
- Group by category — Time words together, nature words together, people words together
- SRS flashcards — Let spaced repetition handle the memorization schedule
Related Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
Jukujikun are compound words where the reading is assigned to the whole word rather than individual kanji. For example, 大人 is read “otona” (adult) — not “daijin” or “oohito.” The reading comes from the Japanese word for the concept, mapped onto Chinese characters.
There are roughly 100-200 common jukujikun in everyday Japanese, with about 50-60 regularly appearing on JLPT exams (especially N3-N1). Focus on the most frequent ones first.
These special readings exist because Japanese adopted Chinese characters to write existing Japanese words. Sometimes, a whole Japanese concept was mapped to a combination of Chinese characters based on meaning, ignoring the individual character readings entirely.
Special readings flagged & drilled automatically by SRS.