JLPT N3 · 8 strokes
Kanji 昔: "once upon a time, antiquity, old times"
The kanji 昔 means "once upon a time, antiquity, old times". It is written with 8 strokes and belongs to JLPT level N3, read セキ, シャク in on'yomi and むかし in kun'yomi.
Stroke order
Strokes are written in the order of the numbers. The order is not decorative: it is what gives the character its balance, and it is also how handwriting search works in Japanese dictionaries.
Readings
On'yomi (Sino-Japanese reading)
セキシャク
Kun'yomi (native Japanese reading)
むかし
In a kun'yomi reading, the dot separates the kanji from its okurigana: かた.る is read かたる and written 語る. A hyphen marks a bound position, like -び in 日.
At a glance
| Meaning | once upon a time, antiquity, old times |
|---|---|
| Strokes | 8 |
| JLPT level | N3 |
| Taught in Japan | grade 3 |
| Frequency rank | 1197 of 2,501 |
Common words with 昔
The most frequent words using this kanji, most common first, with furigana readings. Click one to open it in the reader.
- 昔the old days; the past; former times; a long time ago · the past ten years; the past decade
- 昔話old tale; folk tale; legend · reminiscence
- 大昔ancient times; prehistoric times; the distant past; a very long time ago
- 遠い昔remote past; far ago; time immemorial
- とっくの昔a long, long time ago; very long ago
- その昔a long time ago; in those days
- とうの昔a long time ago; long ago
- 昔ながらunchanged (from long ago); as it was in the past; same old; traditional
- 昔のままthe way it was; the way it used be; as of old; in former times
- 遥か昔long ago
- 一昔前long ago; previous; of a former age
- 昔々long ago; once upon a time
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