How to Search for 常用漢字 (Joyo Kanji)

 

Since you came across this article, I assume you may already be familiar with the concept of 常用漢字（じょうようかんじ） (Joyo Kanji), but if not, here is a brief explanation. Joyo Kanji (常用漢字（じょうようかんじ）) is a set of kanjis designated by the Japanese government as "common use" kanji for everyday use in Japanese writing. 常用（じょうよう） represents "regular use" or "common use." Kanjis that are not categorized as joyo are considered 常用外漢字（じょうようがいかんじ） (non-Joyo Kanji). If you are interested in finding out if a kanji is joyo or non-joyo, the website of the Agency for Cultural Affairs（文化庁（ぶんかちょう））might be helpful. There are other websites that allow you to search for 常用漢字（じょうようかんじ）, but I found this website the most reliable to use as it's an official website of the Japanese government. Since it's only in Japanese (I couldn't find an English one), I'll share how to find out 常用漢字（じょうようかんじ） using this website.

　

1. If you click the above link, this is what shows up.  

2. To search with an on'yomi of the kanji, type the on'yomi word in katakana into the search bar (circled in red). To search with a kun'yomi of the kanji, type the kun'yomi word in hiragana in the search bar. 

 

3. Once you typed in the word, the corresponding Joyo Kanji will show up automatically show up like below with some basic information (on/kun'yomi, example, and notes). As an example, I searched for "つとめる," which I wrote about in my last post. 

　　   

Hope this helps! Please feel free to leave comments and questions below.