今 — “now / present” in Japanese

Grade 2こん, きん, いま

Radical ⼈ · radical 9 The building block this kanji is filed under

“now / present” in Japanese is 今, read kon, kin, ima (こん, きん, いま). It is a Grade 2 Kyōiku kanji, taught in year 2 of Japanese elementary school, and appears in words such as 今日 (today).

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What does 今 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	今
Meaning	now / present
Readings	こん, きん, いま
Grade	Grade 2 (Easy)
Curriculum	Kyōiku kanji · Japanese elementary school
Example	今日 (today)

How to read 今

今 is read kon (こん) or kin (きん) or ima (いま) depending on the word.

Words with 今

今日きょう
今後こんご
今回こんかい
今年ことし
今週こんしゅう
今晩

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Kanji read the same way as 今

Same sound, different character — the classic trap. Compare them side by side:

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Updated: 2026-08-28