JLPT N4 Vocabulary List With Audio

JLPT N4 vocabulary is the second layer of everyday Japanese: the words for reasons, feelings and plans, the verbs of change, the first polite and humble verbs, and the places and people of daily life beyond the home. The JLPT does not publish an official list, so every N4 list is an estimate; this one has 621 words, each with its kana reading, an English meaning and audio. Where it fits in the whole test: the JLPT N4 study guide. If you are starting from the beginning, the JLPT N5 vocabulary list (614 words) comes first. It is the same list the N4 puzzles in our daily Japanese crossword draw from.

The JLPT N4 word list

Audio is Google Cloud text-to-speech (a Japanese neural voice), not a recording of a person. A word that fits two topics is listed once, under its first topic.

How should you study the N4 vocabulary?

1. One topic at a time. Words that belong together (feelings, school, transport) are easier to keep than a random list.
2. About 10 new words a day. Play each one, say it out loud twice, and read the meaning.
3. Learn the する verbs as verbs. 26 entries here are nouns that become verbs with する (準備する, 心配する); say them with する from the start.
4. Test with the meanings hidden. Go down yesterday’s topic, say each meaning, then tap to check.
5. Use the words, not just the list. Fill them into a puzzle, write a sentence, or meet them in a short reading.

For the last step, the daily Japanese crossword turns these words into a grid: each clue is an English meaning and you type the reading in romaji. Crossword’s N4 puzzles draw from this same list of 621 words. For grammar at the same level, see the JLPT N4 grammar list; for reading them in context, the JLPT N4 reading practice; for keeping words over months, the Leitner system.

Where does this list come from?

The words are the N4 entries of the word list behind My Senpai Crossword, as shipped in the Crossword release of November 5, 2026. For this page we corrected 46 entries at build time: 26 する verbs listed under the noun alone, 6 okurigana spellings (落おちる, 集あつまる and the like), two words written with the wrong kanji (上あがる, 下さがる), and 12 glosses, mostly the family and keigo words (家内かない is one’s own wife, 差さし上あげる is humble, 召めし上あがる is respectful). Small source topics are folded into the same 18 groups the N5 list uses, and meanings start in lower case. Some words appear twice, in kanji and in kana (床屋 and とこや) or in two spellings, as in the source list.

Frequently asked questions

How many words do you need for JLPT N4?

The JLPT does not publish an official number. Most N4 lists add about 600 to 700 words on top of N5; this one has 621 N4 words, and with the 614-word N5 list it comes to about 1,250 words in total, which is the range most textbooks quote for N4.

Is there an official JLPT N4 vocabulary list?

No. The JLPT stopped publishing official vocabulary and kanji lists when the current test began in 2010, so every N4 list is an estimate built from the older official lists and textbooks. Lists differ at the edges; the core words are the same.

How long does it take to learn the N4 vocabulary?

At 10 new words a day, 621 words take about two months, plus reviews. Learn them in topic groups, say each one aloud with the audio, and come back to the ones you miss with the meanings hidden.

What is different about N4 words compared with N5?

N5 words are concrete: numbers, days, food, rooms. N4 adds the words that let you talk about reasons, feelings and plans (理由, 気持ち, 予定), the verbs of everyday change (増える, 壊れる, 慣れる) and the first polite and humble verbs (いらっしゃる, 伺う, いただく), which also appear in the N4 grammar section.

Can I download the JLPT N4 vocabulary list?

Yes. The Download CSV link above the list gives a file with every word, its reading, meaning and topic. It opens in any spreadsheet and imports into Anki and most flashcard apps.

Is the audio recorded by a person?

No. Each clip is generated with Google Cloud text-to-speech using a Japanese neural voice, the same kind of voice our apps use. It reads each word from its kana reading, so kanji are never misread, but the pitch of some words that share a reading can differ from what a person would say.

Last reviewed November 6, 2026. Readings and meanings follow the source list with the corrections above. Found a mistake? Email fluencytool@my-senpai.com.