JLPT N3 · Intermediate
JLPT N3 vocabulary list
The level everyone finds hardest: abstract vocabulary, and the jump from textbook Japanese to the real thing.
- Words
- 1,670
- Example sentences
- 5,010
- Written with kanji
- 1,477
- Kana only
- 193 (12%)
N3 has a reputation, and it is deserved. The word count roughly doubles against N4, and the character of the vocabulary changes. You move from concrete nouns and everyday verbs into abstraction and nuance.
The practical advice at N3 is to stop studying words in isolation. Try to read a book, play a game or watch a show with Japanese subtitles. The words you don't know will be the ones you need to study, and the context will make them stick.
What passing looks like: You can follow the gist of a TV segment and read an article with a dictionary at hand rather than in your lap.
A sample of the list
- 商人しょうにん
merchant; trader; tradesman; dealer; shopkeeper
- 灰はい
ash; ashes
- 明後日みょうごにち
day after tomorrow
- 値ね
price; cost
- 他人たにん
another person; other people; others
- 悪口わるくち
(verbal) abuse; speaking ill of people; bad-mouthing; name-calling; slander; abusive language; insulting remarks
- 余りあまりusually kana
remainder; remnant; rest; balance; surplus; remains (of a meal); leftovers
- 雷かみなり
lightning; thunder; thunderbolt
- 軍ぐん
army; armed forces; troops
- 一言ひとこと
single word; a few words; brief comment
- 未だまだusually kana
still; as yet; only
- 印しるし
mark; sign
Where the full N3 list is
All 1,670 N3 words, with their 5,010 example sentences, are in Kotoba Loop.
The sample above is the real data, and the N5 list shows the format in full: every word with its readings, all of its meanings, and three sentences with furigana.
Other levels
Definitions from JMdict under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences are our own. See licenses.