早 · early, fast

JLPT N4 kanji. Readings, meaning, and how the character is built.

早 means early, fast. It is a JLPT N4 kanji written in 6 strokes, read はやい or はや or そう. It is built from 2 parts: 日 (day, sun), 十 (ten). It appears in 早い (early) and 早速 (at once / immediately / promptly).

筆順 · Stroke order

早 is written in 6 strokes, in the order numbered below. Order matters: it is what makes handwriting legible, and it is how the character is looked up in a paper dictionary.

解字 · What it is made of

早 breaks into 2 parts.

• 日 semantic day, sun · top carries the meaning
• 十 other ten · bottom component

Words that use 早

Word	Reading	Meaning
早い	はやい	early
早速	さっそく	at once / immediately / promptly
早口	はやくち	fast-talking

Built from the same parts

These use 日 or 十 too. The part keeps its job from one character to the next, which is what makes it worth learning once.

• 時time
• 曜day of week
• 書to write
• 明bright
• 映to reflect
• 春springtime
• 者someone
• 音sound

Practise 早

Sumi teaches the character before it tests you: stroke order animated, the breakdown above shown as a pull-apart X-ray, then spaced review. Free, in your browser, no signup.

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