音読み: ブン・モン
訓読み: きく・きこえる
画数: 14
部首: 門（もんがまえ）
Meaning
To hear / To listen / To ask
- Basic forms
- 聞く — to listen; to ask / base form
- 聞きます — polite / I listen; I ask / masu form
- 聞いた — past / listened; asked / ta form
- 聞いて — te-form / listen (and …) / linking or request
- 聞かない — negative / don’t listen / negative form
- 聞けば — if (I) listen / conditional
- 聞け — listen! / imperative
- Other common forms
- 聞きたい — want to listen / want to ask / 〜たい form
- 聞ける — can hear / can ask / potential
- 聞かれる — be heard / be asked / passive
- 聞かせる — let (someone) hear / tell / causative
- More
- 聞こう — let’s listen / 〜よう form
- 聞かなかった — didn’t listen / didn’t ask / past negative
- 聞いている — listening / hearing / progressive / state
聞く (きく) is a godan (う-verb) meaning “to listen,” “to hear,” or “to ask.” It’s used both for receiving sound (音楽を聞く — “to listen to music”) and for asking questions (先生に聞く — “to ask the teacher”). The conjugation is regular: く → いて / いた → 聞いて, 聞いた.
- 新聞 — newspaper
- 聞き手 — listener
- 見聞 — experience, knowledge
- 聴聞 — hearing (e.g. trial)
- 伝聞 — hearsay, second-hand information
The kanji 聞 combines the radical 門 (gate) with 耳 (ear), symbolizing the act of hearing through a gate — or receiving information from the outside. It represents listening, asking, and perceiving.
先生に聞いてみましょう。
Let's try asking the teacher.
外の音が聞こえます。
I can hear sounds from outside.
新聞 — newspaper