📖 Meaning & Origin
The 目 radical is a pictogram of an eye — originally a vertical oval with a pupil, rotated to its current horizontal form. It appears in kanji about seeing, looking, and visual perception.
📚 Kanji by JLPT Level
✍️ Where it appears & how it changes shape
目 stands alone and appears on the left in 眠 and 眼. It also forms part of larger characters where it is less obvious: 見 is 目 over a pair of legs, and 相, 真 and 直 all contain it.
🔍 Don't confuse it with
One fewer horizontal stroke inside, and wider. 日 is the sun; 目 is the eye.
目 with a short stroke added on top. 自 means self, as in 自分.
目 with two small legs beneath. 貝 is a shell, and appears in money-related kanji such as 買 and 買.
📈 Beyond N5 — what comes next
| Kanji | Reading | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 直 | ちょく / なおす | to fix, direct | N4 |
| 真 | しん / ま | true, real | N3 |
| 相 | そう / あい | mutual, aspect | N3 |
| 眠 | みん / ねむる | to sleep | N3 |
JLPT does not publish official kanji lists by level. These levels follow the commonly used reference lists and are a guide, not a guarantee.
🗣️ Words you will actually meet
Important for keigo: 目上の人 requires polite language.
🎯 How to use this radical in JLPT study
目 tends to signal looking, attention or judgement rather than the eye as an organ. 見 (see), 相 (regard one another), 真 (true, as in seeing clearly) all sit at that slightly abstract level. Expecting 'something perceived or examined' rather than 'eyeball' will serve you better at N3 and above.
⚠️ The mistake I see most often
Counting 目 as four strokes by analogy with 日. It is five, and the difference matters when looking kanji up by stroke count.
💡 Teacher's Memory Tip
Think of an eye lying on its side — the two horizontal strokes are the eyelids, the vertical strokes are the outer shape of the eye. 目 = eye, seeing.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
The 目 radical means 'eye.' It derives from a pictogram of an eye turned sideways. Kanji with 目 often relate to vision, looking, or being observed.
N5 kanji with 目: 目 (eye), 見 (to see — an eye on legs, walking around to see things).
Tilt the rectangle sideways and add lines inside — that's an eye. 目 in a kanji means something about seeing or looking.
Other N5 Radicals
Practice 「目」 kanji with AI
Nihongo Pass uses spaced repetition to help you master all N5 kanji.