Kanji: 猫 馬 鳥 牛 魚

1. Vocabulary List

2. Kanji Breakdown

猫 — Cat

猫 combines 犬 (animal radical 犭) with 苗 (seedling) — a creature that prowls the fields.

馬 — Horse

The strokes of 馬 trace a horse's mane and legs. The four bottom strokes represent four hooves.

鳥 — Bird

鳥 depicts a bird with a beak, body, and tail feathers. Compare with 島 (island) — 鳥 has an extra horizontal stroke for the tail.

牛 — Cattle

牛 shows a cow's head with horns. The on-reading ぎゅう appears in all food/product compounds.

魚 — Fish

魚 depicts a fish — head at top, body in the middle, tail fins at the bottom. The on-reading ぎょ appears in compounds (金魚, 人魚).

3. Grammar & Sentences

• 猫がいます。(Neko ga imasu.) — There is a cat.
• さくらさんの猫はかわいいです。(Sakura-san no neko wa kawaii desu.) — Sakura's cat is cute.
• 馬に乗ります。(Uma ni norimasu.) — I'll ride a horse.
• 鳥がとんでいます。(Tori ga tonde imasu.) — Birds are flying.
• にわに鳥がたくさんいます。(Niwa ni tori ga takusan imasu.) — There are many birds in the garden.
• 牛乳を飲みます。(Gyuunyuu wo nomimasu.) — I'll drink some milk.
• かずやくんは魚と牛肉が大好きです。(Kazuya-kun wa sakana to gyuuniku ga daisuki desu.) — Kazuya likes fish and beef very much.

4. Learning Context

• 牛 kun vs on readings: うし is used for the animal itself; ぎゅう appears in all compounds (牛肉, 牛乳, 和牛). A safe rule: if 牛 is combined with another kanji, read it ぎゅう.
• 魚 kun vs on readings: さかな is the standalone word for fish; ぎょ appears in compounds (金魚 = gold + fish, 人魚 = person + fish = mermaid).
• 鳥 vs 島: These look similar. 鳥 (bird) has one more horizontal stroke than 島 (island). Mnemonic: a bird needs an extra stroke to take flight.
• Animal habitats: 魚 → underwater (水の中), 鳥 → sky/trees (空・木), 牛 → farm (農場). Useful for いる/います location sentences.
• 乗る + に: The particle for riding is に — 馬に乗る, 電車に乗る, 自転車に乗る. The vehicle/animal takes に, not を.

5. Progress Tracker