Study Japanese language, Kanji; learn about Japanese travel, culture, life, music (JPOP) and more

Kanji Study

You can use this page to randomly display a Kanji, display a specific Kanji or display a previous Kanji of the Day from the mailing lists.

Display random Jōyō Kanji

Display random kanji by grade level: Grade 1  |   Grade 2  |   Grade 3  |   Grade 4  |   Grade 5  |   Grade 6

Display random kanji by JLPT level: N1  |   N2  |   N3  |   N4  |   N5

Find a previous mailing list Kanji:    

Find a specific Kanji:  


Kanji Information Sheet for 世  ( PDF version of this Kanji PDF version )

stroke order illustration  
English:
generation
world
society
public
On-Yomi:
セイ

ソウ
Kun-Yomi:

さんじゅう
とし

ゆき
Bushu (Radical) Info:
一 (いち) – one
| (ぼう) – rod
Henshall Mnemonic: odd world of the thirties' generation
Levels: JLPT N4 | JLPT 3 (old) | Grade 3
Frequency: #135 of the 2500 most used kanji in newspapers

Common Words and/or Phrases Using this Kanji:

Click any individual kanji to view a similar information sheet for it.
Click [K] to look up the word's individual character(s) at WWWJDIC.
Click [D] to look up the word at WWWJDIC (definition is the same but other useful features exist).

Click [Jisho] to look up the word at Jisho.org.

JLPT N4 Words

  •   [せかい]
    (n) the world; society; the universe   [K] [D] [Jisho]

JLPT N3 Words

  •   [よのなか]
    (n) society; the world; the times   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せけん]
    (n) world; society   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せいき]
    (n) century; era   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せわ]
    (n,vs) looking after; help; aid; assistance   [K] [D] [Jisho]

JLPT N2 Words

  •   [ちゅうせい]
    (n-adv,n-t) Middle Ages; mediaeval times   [K] [D] [Jisho]

JLPT N1 Words

  •   [よ]
    (n) world; society; age; generation   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [おせじ]
    (n) flattery; compliment   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せたい]
    (n) household   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せだい]
    (n) generation; the world; the age   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せろん]
    (n) public opinion   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [よろん]
    (n) public opinion   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [しゅっせ]
    (n) promotion; successful career; eminence   [K] [D] [Jisho]

Other Popular Words Not Classified by JLPT

  •   [ぜんせかい]
    (n) the whole world   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [しんせかい]
    (n) a new world; the New World   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [いっせい]
    (n) a lifetime; a generation; foreign immigrant; Japanese immigrant to USA   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  • あの   [あのよ]
    (n) the other world; world of the dead   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [こうせい]
    (n-adv,n) posterity; future life; life to come   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [にじっせいき]
    twentieth century   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せかいいち]
    (n-adv,n-t) best in the world   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [きゅうせいぐん]
    (n) Salvation Army   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [きゅうせいしゅ]
    (n) saviour; messiah   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せかいかん]
    (n) world view; outlook on the world   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [だいにじせかいたいせん]
    (n) World War II   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せかいぎんこう]
    World Bank   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せかいたいせん]
    the World War   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せかいてき]
    (adj-na) global; international; world-famous   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [にせい]
    (n) (1) second generation; foreigner of Japanese parentage; (2) junior; (3) two existences; the present and the future; (4) the second (king of the same name)   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せいきまつ]
    (n) end of a century   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せぎん]
    (n) (abbr) World Bank   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せしゅう]
    (n) heredity; heritage   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せそう]
    (n) (1) phase of life; sign of the times; (2) world (social) conditions; society   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [うきよえ]
    (n) ukiyoe (color print of everyday life in the Edo period)   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [せわにん]
    (n) sponsor; manager; go-between; mediator; agent   [K] [D] [Jisho]
  •   [きんせい]
    (n) recent times   [K] [D] [Jisho]
Find more details for at jisho.org, Yookoso! or WWWJDIC

Acknowledgments

The sofware used to generate this kanji information uses the EDICT and KANJIDIC files. These files are the property of the Electronic Dictionary Research and Development Group at Monash University and are used in conformance with the Group's license.

NOTE: I converted the sources just mentioned years ago and have never really updated so there may be some missing or incorrect information that has been addressed in the original sources but not here.

The first Stroke Order image used on this page is courtesy of Ulrich Apel's excellent open source KanjiVG project. The second image is from the folks at the excellent Jisho Japanese-English dictionary site and it too is based on KanjiVG.

Classifying the kanji and popular vocabulary by the new JLPT levels was done by consulting Jonathan Waller‘s JLPT Resources page, renshuu, Wictionary, and Nihongo Ichiban.

The Henshall Mnemonics are the copyright of Tuttle Publishing and are the result of the hard work by Professor Henshall. See the list I used here.

If you are curious about the lexicography shown in the word definitions, visit the WWWJDIC abbreviations and codes guide and the JMdict/Edict Lexicographical details page.