二 means “two”
に · ni
Also: two radical (no. 7)
- Kun'yomi (Japanese reading)
- ふた, ふたつ, ふたたび
- On'yomi (Chinese reading)
- ニ, ジ
JLPT N5 · Taught in grade 1 · 2 strokes
The story
Two parallel lines: heaven and earth, the duality at the heart of Japanese thought.
Also the sound "ni," like "knee" in English
Where it comes from
Ideographic (指事文字): Two horizontal strokes: two.
Following the same perfect logic as 一: two lines mean two. The top line is slightly shorter than the bottom, giving the character visual balance.
To remember it: Two lines stacked = two. The shorter top line sits above the longer bottom line.
Its parts
- 二 Two · Entire character
Two horizontal strokes: the number two
Words with 二
- 二人 (ふたり, futari): two people
- 二倍 (にばい, nibai): double / twofold
Example sentences
- りんごを二つ買いました。 I bought two apples.
- 二人で行きましょう。 Let's go together (the two of us).
Kanji that look like 二
- 一 (one): 一 is a single stroke; 二 doubles it
- 三 (three): 三 adds one more stroke; count the horizontal lines
More from Ancient Counting
Learn 二 and more kanji free on Fuji Learning · All kanji
Readings from KANJIDIC2, © EDRDG, CC BY-SA.