Learning guides
Understand readings and expressions, then put them into practice with review and mock tests.
外観 and 景観: exterior appearance and scenery
Compare a building's or box's 外観 with the 景観 of a town, mountains, or a lake. Read what each word names, along with exterior and interior states, continuing preservation, and enjoyment of a view.
施設, 設備, and 装置: facilities, equipment, and devices
Read the naming focus of 施設, 設備, and 装置 through sports and welfare facilities, factory and park equipment, and temperature-control devices. Compare plans, replacement, and automatic or manual operation.
水道, 給水, and 排水: supply systems, water delivery, and wastewater
Follow 水道 in supply shutoffs and faucets, 給水 in water delivery and water stations, and 排水 in drains and wastewater. Distinguish available water from water actually drunk, and identify what is treated.
配管: water pipes and plumbing beneath the floor
Identify 配管 as piping in two examples: replacing old water pipes and water leaking from plumbing beneath the floor. Connect the English names with the object replaced and the source of the leak.
電源 and 電力: the supply switched and the power calculated
Compare machine and backup 電源 with the 電力 used by a model or calculated for an assumed outage. Identify a shutdown request, an actual switch after an outage, and the object of a power calculation.
電灯, 照明, and 灯り: lamps, lighting, and light
Compare the entrance 電灯, stage or desk 照明, and 灯り in a window or from a phone. Identify the lamp switched on, the lighting changed, the fixture installed, and the light used while moving.
蛍光灯 and 街灯: fluorescent lights and streetlights
Connect 蛍光灯 with a flickering or switched-off fluorescent light and 街灯 with bridge streetlights or a replaced bulb. Separate the names from the particular locations and operating conditions in the examples.
水槽 and 浴槽: a fish tank and a bathtub
Compare 水槽 containing fish with 浴槽 filled with warm water or wide enough to stretch out one's legs. Identify the container names, the objects inside them, and the sequence of moving fish or filling a tub.
防音 and 遮音: overlapping soundproofing meanings
Compare 防音材 and 防音工事 with 遮音 applied to walls or a door. Read the overlapping soundproofing meanings while identifying installed material, the purpose of work, and an expert's assessment.
煙突 and 排気: chimneys, exhaust systems, and vehicle exhaust
Read 煙突 as a named structure and 排気 in an exhaust system or vehicle exhaust. Identify the source of smoke, the equipment inspected, and the purpose of closing a window.
舗装 and 整備: paving, unpaved paths, and maintenance
Read 舗装 in road repaving and an unpaved path alongside 整備 in trail improvement and bicycle maintenance, keeping each activity and its object clear.
掲示板 and 掲示: a board, posting, and posted content
Compare physical and electronic 掲示板 with 掲示 in posting a notice or describing posted rules, distinguishing the medium, the action, and the possibility of posting.
倒壊 and 崩壊: physical collapse and the collapse of trust
Read 倒壊 for a house or a wall at risk and 崩壊 for part of a stone wall or trust, distinguishing completed collapse, risk, and a condition for prevention.
崩れる and 崩す: walls, disrupted schedules, and breaking a bill
Compare 崩れる for a wall or schedule changing with 崩す for knocking down a tower or breaking a bill, preserving both physical and additional meanings.
窓枠 and 天窓: a window frame and a skylight
Distinguish 窓枠 as a window part from 天窓 as a type of window, following the frame's color and partial condition and the skylight's light and ventilation examples.
都市 and 都会: overlapping city names in different contexts
Read 都市 in development and urban-rural comparison alongside 都会 in moving away and knowing city life's convenience and bustle, without imposing new population or status rules.
市街地 and 街並み: an urban area and its streetscape
Compare 市街地 as an area with passing vehicles or incoming smoke and 街並み as a view observed or preserved, identifying the object of each action.
住宅街 and 繁華街: residential and busy districts in context
Read 住宅街 and 繁華街 through a route, a late-night noise request, weekend foot traffic, and a nearby residential area, keeping each example's scope clear.
路地 and 街路: alleys, city streets, and what modifiers describe
Compare 路地 and 街路 through flowerpots, shops, and trees on both sides, reading the road names without turning tree species into counts or spacing.
劇場 and 舞台: a theater, a stage, and a setting for activities
Distinguish 劇場 as a theater facility from 舞台 as an actor's stage or a city's figurative role as a setting, keeping door opening separate from watching a play.
講堂, 体育館, and 球場: Graduation, exercise, and game venues
Compare auditorium, gymnasium, and ballpark names through a planned graduation ceremony, chairs arranged for it, rainy-day exercise, and a crowded game-day stadium.
庁舎, 官庁, and 役所: Government buildings, agencies, and offices
Compare a government building toured for its architecture, an agency contacted about a report, and an office visited for moving procedures or a certificate.
県庁 and 都庁: Prefectural office and Tokyo government building
Read 県庁 and 都庁 through a guide map received, a building toured and sketched, documents submitted, and a route checked on a map.
消防署 and 消防士: Fire station, firefighter, and their roles
Distinguish しょうぼうしょ from しょうぼうし through a new fire station, an explanation received there, a firefighter running toward a building, and children learning from one.
警察署 and 交番: Police station, police box, and shared tasks
Compare a found key taken to a police station and a found wallet taken to a police box, alongside asking directions and describing a lost item.
校舎 and 校庭: School building and schoolyard
Read the school building through corridors that still smell of wood and graduates coming to tour it, and the schoolyard through lunchtime play and puddles after rain.
駅舎 and 車庫: Station buildings, garages, and changed uses
Compare a station building restored as a tourist information center with a garage converted into a workshop, alongside waiting outside and putting away a car.
屋敷, 邸宅, and 宅地: Mansions and land in models or plans
Compare overlapping mansion and estate names in story settings and a museum with residential land represented by model houses or planned housing lots.
井戸, 泉, and 貯水池: Wells, springs, and reservoirs
Compare drawing water from a well, resting beside a spring, and rainwater stored in a reservoir, while following the clear spring, secure lid, and water-level checks.
架橋 and 架ける: Physical bridges and figurative connections
Compare bridge construction across a river and a wooden bridge with research aimed at linking two fields and activities connecting two towns through exchange. Follow the construction start, research aim, past action, and present description.