Lesson L1N5Core N5 Vocabulary and Communication⏱ 15 min

Weather and Nature Vocabulary

This lesson covers fundamental Japanese vocabulary related to weather conditions (sunny, cloudy, rainy, etc.) and nature (sky, mountain, river, etc.). You will practice pronunciation and usage in simple sentences, building a foundation for basic conversation about the environment.

🎯 Goal: Learn core N5 vocabulary describing weather and nature.

Lesson Content

Learning Goal

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to recognize and use 20 common N5 words related to weather, nature, and time. You'll be able to talk about the weather, describe the time of day, and make simple statements about your daily schedule.

Concept

Weather and nature words are used constantly in daily Japanese conversation. Many of these words also combine with time words (like 今日 kyō – today, 明日 ashita – tomorrow) to help you describe when things happen. You'll notice that some words have multiple meanings depending on context – for example, 明るい akarui can mean "bright" (weather) or "light" (color).

Step-by-Step Breakdown

1. Weather Words

Japanese	Romaji	English
晴れる	hareru	to clear up (weather)
曇り	kumori	cloudy weather
暗い	kurai	dark
明るい	akarui	light, bright

Example sentences:

今日は晴れました。 Kyō wa haremashita. (It cleared up today.)
明日は曇りです。 Ashita wa kumori desu. (Tomorrow is cloudy.)
部屋が暗いです。 Heya ga kurai desu. (The room is dark.)
外は明るいです。 Soto wa akarui desu. (Outside is bright.)

2. Time Words

Japanese	Romaji	English
昨日	kinō	yesterday
明日	ashita	tomorrow
日曜日	nichiyōbi	Sunday
時	ji	hour, o'clock
時々	tokidoki	sometimes
時計	tokei	watch, clock
昼	hiru	noon, daytime
晩	ban	evening
昼ご飯	hiru gohan	lunch
晩ご飯	ban gohan	dinner

Example sentences:

昨日は日曜日でした。 Kinō wa nichiyōbi deshita. (Yesterday was Sunday.)
明日は何時ですか？ Ashita wa nanji desu ka? (What time is it tomorrow?)
時々映画を見ます。 Tokidoki eiga o mimasu. (I sometimes watch movies.)
昼ご飯を食べました。 Hiru gohan o tabemashita. (I ate lunch.)

3. Other Useful Words

Japanese	Romaji	English
新聞	shinbun	newspaper
方	kata	person (polite)
早い	hayai	early
映画	eiga	movie
映画館	eigakan	cinema
春	haru	spring

Example sentences:

あの方は先生です。 Ano kata wa sensei desu. (That person is a teacher.)
朝早いです。 Asa hayai desu. (The morning is early.)
映画館で映画を見ます。 Eigakan de eiga o mimasu. (I watch a movie at the cinema.)
春は暖かいです。 Haru wa atatakai desu. (Spring is warm.)

Mini Examples

晴れる → 明日は晴れますか？ Ashita wa haremasu ka? (Will it clear up tomorrow?)
暗い → 夜は暗いです。 Yoru wa kurai desu. (Night is dark.)
時計 → 時計を見てください。 Tokei o mite kudasai. (Please look at the clock.)
早い → 彼は早く来ました。 Kare wa hayaku kimashita. (He came early.)

Common Mistake

❌ Mixing up 時 toki (time, when) and 時 ji (o'clock)

時 toki is used for "when" or "time" in general: 時々 tokidoki (sometimes)
時 ji is used for hours: 三時 sanji (3 o'clock)

❌ Forgetting that 方 kata is polite for "person"

Use 方 kata for strangers or people you respect
Use 人 hito for casual or general "person"

Quick Practice

Fill in the blanks with the correct word:

今日は___です。 (It's cloudy today.)
→ 今日は曇りです。
私は___に映画を見ます。 (I watch a movie sometimes.)
→ 私は時々映画を見ます。
あの___は田中さんです。 (That person is Tanaka-san.)
→ あの方は田中さんです。
___は早いですね。 (Spring is early, isn't it?)
→ 春は早いですね。

Summary and Next Step

You've learned 20 essential N5 vocabulary words covering weather, time, and nature. Practice using these words in simple sentences about your daily life – for example, describing today's weather or what time you eat lunch.

Next step: Try combining these words with basic verbs like です desu (is/are) and ます masu (polite verb ending) to make full sentences. For example: