あLearn Japanese Online Hub

Kanji · JLPT N5 · Level 3

interval, between

Meaning
interval, between
On reading
Kun reading
Memory hook

日 (sun) sitting inside 門 (gate): sunlight through the crack in a gate, the space between. カン in compounds, あいだ on its own. 時間 jikan is time.

Words that use 間

time, hour
human being

How to write 間

Stroke order · 12 strokes
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
  1. 1. Vertical.
  2. 2. Horizontal, then turn down.
  3. 3 to 4. Horizontal.
  4. 5. Vertical.
  5. 6. Vertical, ending in a hook.
  6. 7 to 8. Horizontal.
  7. 9. Vertical.
  8. 10. Horizontal, then turn down.
  9. 11 to 12. Horizontal.

Stroke data from KanjiVG, CC BY-SA 3.0.

General rules
  • Top to bottom, left to right.
  • Horizontal strokes before crossing vertical ones (十 = horizontal, then vertical).
  • Outside before inside - but close a box last (口).
  • A vertical that passes all the way through comes last (中).
  • Left-falling diagonal before right-falling (大).

間 is taught on day 10 of the kanji course, alongside , with two writing passes and a short quiz.