Japanese word

聞く

Pronunciation

Romajikiku

Meaning

  • verbhear

Example

犬の鳴き声を聞きました。inu no na ki goe o ki ki ma shi ta

I heard a dog barking.

Illustration for 聞く (hear)

More examples

毎朝、鳥の声を聞きます。mai asa tori no koe o ki ki ma su

I hear birds every morning.

駅で大きな音を聞きました。eki de ō ki na oto o ki ki ma shi ta

I heard a loud noise at the station.

Core concept

It covers receiving sound, choosing to pay attention to it, and obtaining information by putting a question to someone.

Common phrases

  • 声を聞くkoe o ki ku

    hear a voice

  • 音楽を聞くon gaku o ki ku

    listen to music

  • 話を聞くhanashi o ki ku

    listen to a story

Similar words

聞こえるkikoeru: To reach someone's ears without requiring focused attention.
聞き取るkikitoru: To recognize the words or sounds that are received through listening.

Definition in Japanese

耳に入った音や声を感じ取り、その存在や内容を知る。mimi ni hai tta oto ya koe o kan ji to ri so no son zai ya nai yō o shi ru

Word origin

聞く (kiku) is a native Japanese verb, and its written form uses 聞 (bun, "hear"), a Chinese character associated with hearing and listening.

Usage tips

  • English separates hear, listen, and ask, but 聞く (kiku) uses one polite form, 聞きます (kikimasu), for all three senses and relies on context to distinguish them.

Other meanings

  • listenverb
  • askverb

Related words

  • 聞き手kikitelistenernoun
  • 聞き方kikikataway of listeningnoun

Word lists with this word