八 Kanji: Meaning, Readings and Stroke Order

八: eight; eighth. JLPT N5; 2 strokes.

Readings

On readings

ハチ

Kun readings

や-、やっ.つ、よう

Romaji

hachi, ya, you

Study notes

八 is the number eight; it also indicates 'eighth'.

On reading: ハチ in 八月 (はちがつ, August), 八時 (はちじ, eight o'clock), 八十 (はちじゅう, eighty). Before some sounds it becomes はっ: 八百 (はっぴゃく, eight hundred), 八千 (はっせん, eight thousand), 八本 (はっぽん).

Kun readings: や in 八つ (やっつ, eight objects); よう in 八日 (ようか, the 8th of the month; eight days).

Special readings: 八百屋 (やおや, fruit vendor), 八百長 (やおちょう, fixed game) and 八百万 (やおよろず, myriads, as in 八百万の神, the innumerable deities) are read as whole words.

Remember: 八 is considered a lucky number because its shape widens toward the bottom, an image expressed by the word 末広がり (すえひろがり, which widens toward the end).

Example words

• 八つ (やっつ) — eight things
• 八月 (はちがつ) — August
• 八百屋 (やおや) — greengrocer
• 八日 (ようか) — eight days; the eighth day of the month

Example sentences

八時に起きます。

hachiji ni okimasu.

I get up at eight.

Stroke order

Follow the steps in order. Each new stroke is highlighted.

Stroke paths: KanjiVG, CC BY-SA 3.0. Sequential diagrams derived from the original paths.