川
川 in useful words
Learn the character in complete words, because its pronunciation can change with context. Read each word aloud, connect it with the meaning, and then cover the reading to test yourself.
- 川かわ
- river
- 小川おがわ
- stream
- 川口かわぐち
- river mouth
Reading 川 in context
川 alone is かわ, river. In 小川 (おがわ, stream) and 川口 (かわぐち, river mouth), sounds change inside the word: かわ becomes がわ in 小川, while くち becomes ぐち in 川口.
Try it in a sentence
Practice sentence written for this site.
川の水は冷たいです。
かわの みずは つめたいです。
The river water is cold.
Watch for this: Voicing changes are not automatic in every compound. Memorise 小川 as おがわ. When writing 川, keep three separate downward strokes in left-to-right order.
Check yourself: Read 小川. Does 川 keep the sound かわ?
小川 is おがわ; 川 becomes がわ.
This word has a voicing change. It is a word-level pattern, not a rule that every 川 must become がわ in a compound.
Choose your next practice
For reading, cover a word’s pronunciation and recall it before checking. For handwriting, hide the stroke diagram and write the character from memory. An isolated reading list is a reference; the word determines which sound you need.