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Japanese weather vocabulary is essential for everyday conversation and appears regularly in N5 listening and reading tasks. The four core words are はれ (sunny), くもり (cloudy), あめ (rain), and ゆき (snow). Weather adjectives like あつい (hot), さむい (cold), and あたたかい (warm) are equally important.
Covers: core weather words · temperature adjectives · seasons · forecast phrases · asking about weather · weather verbs · example sentences · common mistakes
| 日本語 | Kanji | Reading | Meaning | Part of Speech |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| てんき | 天気 | tenki | weather | noun |
| はれ | 晴れ | hare | sunny / clear sky | noun |
| くもり | 曇り | kumori | cloudy | noun |
| あめ | 雨 | ame | rain | noun |
| ゆき | 雪 | yuki | snow | noun |
| かぜ | 風 | kaze | wind | noun |
| かみなり | 雷 | kaminari | thunder / lightning | noun |
| きり | 霧 | kiri | fog / mist | noun |
| あらし | 嵐 | arashi | storm | noun |
| おおあめ | 大雨 | ōame | heavy rain | noun |
| こさめ | 小雨 | kosame | light rain / drizzle | noun |
| にじ | 虹 | niji | rainbow | noun |
| たいふう | 台風 | taifū | typhoon | noun |
| てんきよほう | 天気予報 | tenki yohō | weather forecast | noun |
These い-adjectives describe temperature and appear frequently in N5 listening tasks.
| 日本語 | Kanji | Reading | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| あつい | 暑い | atsui | hot (weather/air) | For weather. Different kanji from 熱い (hot to touch). |
| さむい | 寒い | samui | cold (weather/air) | For weather. Different from つめたい (cold to touch). |
| あたたかい | 暖かい | atatakai | warm (weather) | Pleasant warmth, like spring. |
| すずしい | 涼しい | suzushii | cool / refreshingly cool | Pleasantly cool, like autumn. |
| むしあつい | 蒸し暑い | mushiatsui | hot and humid | Common in Japan's rainy season. |
| つめたい | 冷たい | tsumetai | cold to touch | Cold water, cold objects — not weather. |
| 季節 | Kanji | Reading | Season | Typical weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| はる | 春 | haru | Spring (Mar–May) | あたたかい、さくらがさく |
| なつ | 夏 | natsu | Summer (Jun–Aug) | あつい、むしあつい、たいふう |
| あき | 秋 | aki | Autumn (Sep–Nov) | すずしい、かぜがつよい |
| ふゆ | 冬 | fuyu | Winter (Dec–Feb) | さむい、ゆきがふる |
| Verb | Kanji | Reading | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ふる | 降る | furu | to fall (rain/snow) | あめがふっています (It's raining.) |
| はれる | 晴れる | hareru | to clear up | あしたははれるでしょう (It will clear up tomorrow.) |
| くもる | 曇る | kumoru | to become cloudy | そらがくもってきた (The sky has become cloudy.) |
| ふく | 吹く | fuku | to blow (wind) | かぜがふいています (The wind is blowing.) |
| あがる | 上がる | agaru | to let up (rain stops) | あめがあがりました (The rain has stopped.) |
| Japanese | English |
|---|---|
| てんきはどうですか。 | What is the weather like? |
| きょうははれです。 | Today is sunny. |
| あめがふっています。 | It is raining. |
| ゆきがふっています。 | It is snowing. |
| かぜがつよいです。 | The wind is strong. |
| きょうはとてもあついですね。 | It's very hot today, isn't it? |
| さむいですね。コートがひつようです。 | It's cold, isn't it. You need a coat. |
| あしたのてんきはくもりのちあめでしょう。 | Tomorrow's weather will be cloudy, then rain. |
| てんきよほうによると、あしたはゆきです。 | According to the forecast, it will snow tomorrow. |
| なつはむしあつくてたいへんです。 | Summer is tough because it's hot and humid. |
きょうははれです (Today is sunny). You can also say きょうははれています (It is sunny/clear today), using the verb はれる (to clear up) in the ている form.
はる (春, spring), なつ (夏, summer), あき (秋, autumn), ふゆ (冬, winter). To say "in summer": なつに. To say "I like autumn": あきがすきです.
Use あつい (hot), さむい (cold), あたたかい (warm), すずしい (cool) for weather. Temperature in degrees: 25度 (nijūgo-do = 25°C). Degrees is 度 (ど).
つゆ (梅雨, tsuyu) — the rainy season, typically early June to mid-July in most of Honshu. Characterized by むしあつい (hot and humid) weather and frequent おおあめ (heavy rain).
てんきはどうですか (Tenki wa dō desu ka?). Or shorter: きょうのてんきは？ (What's today's weather?). For tomorrow: あしたのてんきはどうですか。
Both are read あつい but use different kanji. 暑い = hot weather/air temperature. 熱い = hot to the touch (hot food, hot water, fever). For weather always use 暑い.
The YoruLearn app builds weather vocabulary through spaced repetition flashcards and sentence reading — covering weather words, temperature adjectives, and seasonal expressions so you can read and produce them without hesitation.