硬い
かたい · katai
Hard, solid, tough
- stiff, tight, wooden, unpolished (e.g. writing)
- strong, firm (not viscous or easily moved)
- safe, steady, honest, steadfast
Other ways to say “hard” in Japanese →
flat · what is pitch accent?
Say it out loud
Press the microphone and say 硬い (かたい)
Your browser’s speech recognition checks whether it understood you (in Chrome, Google processes the audio). Nihoner doesn’t record anything.
Do you really know it?
Learn its family in 60 seconds
4 words that share a kanji with 硬い. Tap each card — then save only the ones that are new to you.
Your memory hook
Link the sound or the kanji to something you already know — a personal hook is one of the fastest ways to make a word stick. It’s saved to your free account with the word.
Kanji in this word
Can you write it? Draw kanji from memory →
Words that share a kanji
Questions
What does 硬い mean?
Hard, solid, tough. It can also mean: stiff, tight, wooden, unpolished (e.g. writing); strong, firm (not viscous or easily moved); safe, steady, honest, steadfast.
How do you pronounce 硬い?
かたい (katai). Pitch accent: heiban — flat. Press Listen above to hear it.
What JLPT level is 硬い?
JLPT N2 — upper intermediate. See the JLPT N2 guide.
How do I remember 硬い?
Say it out loud with an example sentence, test yourself above, then save it to your deck: Nihoner brings it back just before you would forget it (spaced repetition).
Save your words
Create a free account and they will be waiting in your review deck — Nihoner brings each one back right before you would forget it.
Free · no card · your words are kept