人 means “person”

ひと · hito

Kun'yomi (Japanese reading): ひと
On'yomi (Chinese reading): ジン, ニン

JLPT N5 · Taught in grade 1 · 2 strokes

The story

Two strokes lean on each other. Even the character for "person" shows that humans need each other.

One of the most common kanji, appearing in countless compound words

Where it comes from

Pictographic (象形文字): A person standing, seen from the side.

The original pictograph showed a person standing in profile: you could see arms, legs, and body. Over centuries, it was simplified to just two strokes: the two legs of a person in mid-stride.

To remember it: Two legs walking: the simplest possible drawing of a human being.

Its parts

人 Person · Entire character

A pictograph of a person walking: two legs in stride

Words with 人

人生 (じんせい, jinsei): life (human life)
友人 (ゆうじん, yuujin): friend
女人 (にょにん, nyonin): woman (formal)
一人 (ひとり, hitori): one person / alone
二人 (ふたり, futari): two people
人数 (にんずう, ninzuu): number of people
万人 (ばんにん, bannin): everyone / all people
千人 (せんにん, sennin): a thousand people
百人 (ひゃくにん, hyakunin): a hundred people
十人 (じゅうにん, juunin): ten people
多人数 (たにんずう, taninzuu): a large number of people
人気 (にんき, ninki): popularity
大人 (おとな, otona): adult
本人 (ほんにん, honnin): the person in question
外人 (がいじん, gaijin): foreigner
人形 (にんぎょう, ningyou): doll / puppet

Example sentences

あの人は誰ですか。 Who is that person?
日本人の友達がいます。 I have a Japanese friend.
一人で旅行しました。 I traveled alone.

Kanji that look like 人

入 (enter): 人 has even-length strokes, 入 has a longer right stroke: entering
大 (big): 大 adds a horizontal stroke: a person stretching arms wide
犬 (dog): 犬 adds a dot to 大: a big creature with a spot

More from People & Life

Learn 人 and more kanji free on Fuji Learning · All kanji