聞く（きく）
JLPT N5 · Godan verb (Group 1)
Pitch accent: heiban (flat) — starts low, stays high, no drop
Meaning: to listen / ask
Conjugation
| Form | Japanese | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| masu-form (polite) | 聞きます | ききます |
| te-form | 聞いて | きいて |
| ta-form (past) | 聞いた | きいた |
| nai-form (negative) | 聞かない | きかない |
| potential form | 聞ける | きける |
See the full conjugation table for "聞く" →
Example sentences
- 音楽を聞きながら勉強する。 — I study while listening to music.
- わからないことを先生に聞いた。 — I asked the teacher about the things I didn't understand.
Idioms & proverbs containing “聞く”
- 見ると聞くとは大違い (みるときくとはおおちがい) — there is a great difference between being told about something and actually seeing it with your own eyes
- 聞くと見るとは大違い (きくとみるとはおおちがい) — don't believe everything you hear; seeing is believing; to have heard of is not to have seen
- 聞くは一時の恥、聞かぬは末代の恥 (きくはいっときのはじ、きかぬはまつだいのはじ) — better to ask and be embarrassed than not ask and never know
- 聞くは一時の恥、聞かぬは一生の恥 (きくはいっときのはじ、きかぬはいっしょうのはじ) — better to ask and be embarrassed than not ask and never know
- 音に聞く (おとにきく) — to be widely known; to be famous
Related words
See it used in real works
- Example sentences from Japanese novels & web fiction (Massif)
- Hear “聞く” pronounced in real videos (YouGlish)