JLPT N4 Practice Test: Free Online Quiz With Answers

Choose the word or reading that best fits.

1. 1.友だちとの___をわすれてしまいました。

   1. 約束 2. 予約 3. 用意 4. 説明
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   Answer: 1. 約束

   約束 (やくそく) means "promise/arrangement with a person," making it the natural fit for forgetting a commitment made with a friend. The tempting wrong choice, 予約 (よやく), means "reservation" (e.g., for a restaurant or hotel) — it's used for booking services, not personal promises between people. Remember: 約束（やくそく） is between people; 予約（よやく） is with a business.

   • 2. 予約: 「予約（よやく）」means 'reservation', used for businesses (restaurants, hotels). A promise with a friend is interpersonal, not a booking.
   • 3. 用意: 「用意（ようい）」means 'preparation / getting ready', not an agreement between people.
   • 4. 説明: 「説明（せつめい）」means 'explanation'. Forgetting an explanation is plausible but doesn't match the friend-commitment context the sentence sets up.

2. 2.「急ぐ」の読み方はどれですか。

   1. およぐ 2. いそぐ 3. さわぐ 4. ぬぐ
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   Answer: 2. いそぐ

   「急ぐ（いそぐ）」is correctly read as いそぐ (to hurry/rush). The most tempting wrong choice is およぐ (泳ぐ（およぐ）, to swim), as both share the ぐ ending and similar mora count. However, 急 (きゅう) carries the meaning of urgency/haste, which matches いそぐ. およぐ corresponds to an entirely different kanji (泳（えい）). Recognizing the kanji 急（きゅう） is key to choosing the right reading.

   • 1. およぐ: 「およぐ」is the reading of 泳（およ）ぐ (to swim), a different kanji entirely. The 急 in this question carries the meaning of haste.
   • 3. さわぐ: 「さわぐ」is the reading of 騒（さわ）ぐ (to make noise), another distinct kanji.
   • 4. ぬぐ: 「ぬぐ」is the reading of 脱（ぬ）ぐ (to take off clothes). The kanji 急 has no ぬ reading.

3. 3.このアプリはとても___です。毎日つかっています。

   1. 不便 2. 便利 3. 大変 4. 危険
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   Answer: 2. 便利

   便利（べんり） (convenient) is correct — the sentence says "I use it every day," which logically follows from an app being convenient. The most tempting wrong choice, 不便（ふべん） (inconvenient), is the direct opposite; you wouldn't use something daily if it were inconvenient. 大変（たいへん） (difficult/hard) and 危険（きけん） (dangerous) don't fit the positive, routine-use context.

   • 1. 不便: 「不便（ふべん）」means 'inconvenient' — the direct antonym. You wouldn't keep using an app daily if it were inconvenient.
   • 3. 大変: 「大変（たいへん）」means 'tough / difficult'. An app described as difficult would not invite daily, casual use.
   • 4. 危険: 「危険（きけん）」means 'dangerous'. Daily use of a dangerous app contradicts the positive framing of 毎日（まいにち）使（つか）っています.

4. 4.へやがきたないので、___なさい。

   1. かたづけ 2. でかけ 3. みつけ 4. つづけ
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   Answer: 1. かたづけ

   かたづけ (片付け（かたづけ）) means "to tidy up/clean up," which perfectly fits the sentence: "The room is dirty, so clean it up." The most tempting distractor might be つづけ (続け（つづけ）, "continue"), but continuing makes no logical sense when the room is dirty. かたづけ is the only choice that responds appropriately to the stated problem of a messy room.

   • 2. でかけ: 「でかけ」(出（で）かけ, go out) doesn't address the messy room — leaving the house doesn't clean it.
   • 3. みつけ: 「みつけ」(見（み）つけ, find) is about discovering something, not tidying up.
   • 4. つづけ: 「つづけ」(続（つづ）け, continue) would mean continuing the current state — i.e. keeping it dirty. That contradicts the instruction.

5. 5.わたしの___は音楽をきくことです。

   1. しゅみ 2. つごう 3. きもち 4. じゆう
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   Answer: 1. しゅみ

   しゅみ (趣味（しゅみ）) means "hobby" or "interest," making it the perfect fit — the sentence means "My hobby is listening to music." The most tempting wrong choice is きもち (気持ち（きもち）), meaning "feeling/emotion," but you don't describe a feeling as an activity you do. しゅみ specifically refers to a leisure pursuit, while きもち refers to an emotional state.

   • 2. つごう: 「つごう」(都合（つごう）) means 'circumstances / convenience' (often about scheduling). It isn't an activity you do for fun.
   • 3. きもち: 「きもち」(気持（きも）ち) is a 'feeling / emotion', not an activity. Hobbies are activities, not emotions.
   • 4. じゆう: 「じゆう」(自由（じゆう）) is the abstract noun 'freedom'. It can't be the predicate of '___ is listening to music'.

6. 6.むすこが帰ってこないので、母は___しています。

   1. あんしん 2. しんぱい 3. さんせい 4. しょうかい
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   Answer: 2. しんぱい

   しんぱい (心配（しんぱい）) means "worry/concern," which fits perfectly — the mother is worried because her son hasn't come home. The most tempting wrong choice, あんしん (安心（あんしん）), means "relief/peace of mind," which is the exact opposite feeling. Since the son is missing, the mother would be worried, not relieved. さんせい (agreement) and しょうかい (introduction) are clearly unrelated to the context.

   • 1. あんしん: 「あんしん」means 'relief / peace of mind' — the opposite emotion. A mother whose child is missing wouldn't feel relieved.
   • 3. さんせい: 「さんせい」(賛成（さんせい）) means 'agreement' with an opinion. It doesn't express emotional reaction to a missing son.
   • 4. しょうかい: 「しょうかい」(紹介（しょうかい）) means 'introduction'. It refers to introducing people, not feeling concerned.

7. 7.「やさしい先生」と反対の意味はどれですか。

   1. しんせつな先生 2. きびしい先生 3. 元気な先生 4. ゆうめいな先生
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   Answer: 2. きびしい先生

   きびしい (strict/severe) is the correct opposite of やさしい (kind/gentle). The most tempting wrong choice is しんせつな (kind/helpful), which actually overlaps in meaning with やさしい rather than opposing it. While both しんせつ and やさしい feel positive, きびしい captures the true antonym — a teacher who is demanding and stern, the direct contrast to one who is gentle and easygoing.

   • 1. しんせつな先生: 「しんせつな先生（せんせい）」(kind teacher) is a near-synonym of やさしい, not its opposite. Both describe warmth.
   • 3. 元気な先生: 「元気（げんき）な先生（せんせい）」(energetic teacher) describes vigour, not the gentleness/strictness axis.
   • 4. ゆうめいな先生: 「ゆうめいな先生（せんせい）」(famous teacher) describes fame, unrelated to personality contrast with やさしい.

8. 8.電車がとまったので、会社に___しまいました。

   1. まちがえて 2. おくれて 3. まにあって 4. つとめて
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   Answer: 2. おくれて

   おくれて (遅れ（おくれ）て) means "to be late," which fits perfectly — the train stopped, so the speaker ended up late to work. The most tempting wrong choice is まにあって (間に合っ（まにあっ）て), meaning "to make it in time," which is the opposite meaning. Note that まにあって would require a negative context to make sense here, but the sentence describes a negative outcome caused by the train stopping.

   • 1. まちがえて: 「まちがえて」(間違（まちが）えて, made a mistake) is plausible but doesn't describe being late — a stopped train delays arrival, it doesn't cause an error.
   • 3. まにあって: 「まにあって」(間（ま）に合（あ）って, made it on time) is the opposite outcome. If the train stopped, you wouldn't make it on time.
   • 4. つとめて: 「つとめて」(勤（つと）めて, working at / striving) doesn't fit a sudden train delay — it describes sustained effort or employment.

9. 9.レストランに 電話して、せきを ___ しました。

   1. よやく 2. よしゅう 3. やくそく 4. よてい
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   Answer: 1. よやく

   予約（よやく） means 'reservation/booking', which is what you do when calling a restaurant to secure a seat. 約束 (やくそく) means 'a promise/appointment with a person', not a reservation of something. 予定 (よてい) means 'plan/schedule', and 予習 (よしゅう) means 'preparatory study' for class.

   • 2. よしゅう: 「よしゅう」(予習（よしゅう）) is preparatory study before class. It doesn't mean booking a seat.
   • 3. やくそく: 「やくそく」is a personal promise between people, not a reservation with a business.
   • 4. よてい: 「よてい」is a plan/schedule. You don't 'make a よてい' with a restaurant — you reserve (予約（よやく）).

10. 10.「友だちに 本を かりたから、あした ___。」

    1. かえします 2. かえります 3. かります 4. もらいます
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    Answer: 1. かえします

    返す (かえす) is a transitive verb meaning 'to return (something)'. Since you borrowed a book, you return it. 帰る (かえる) also sounds similar but means 'to go home/return (oneself)' — it's intransitive and cannot take a book as its object. 借りる（かりる） means 'to borrow', and もらう means 'to receive'.

    • 2. かえります: 「かえります」is intransitive 'go home / oneself returns'. It cannot take a book as object.
    • 3. かります: 「かります」(borrow) is what you already did — the question asks the next action.
    • 4. もらいます: 「もらいます」(receive) also doesn't fit returning a borrowed item back.

Choose the option that correctly fills the blank.

1. 11.わたしは すしを ___ ことが あります。

   1. 食べる 2. 食べて 3. 食べた 4. 食べない
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   Answer: 3. 食べた

   「〜たことがある」is the set grammar pattern meaning "have had the experience of ~." It requires the past tense (た-form) before ことがある, making 食べ（たべ）た correct. The most tempting wrong choice, 食べる（たべる） (dictionary form), would form 「食べる（たべる）ことがある」, which means "there are times when I eat" — a statement of habit/frequency, not past experience.

   • 1. 食べる: 「食（た）べる」(dictionary form) gives 食（た）べることがある, meaning 'there are times when I eat (it)' — a habitual statement, not the past-experience pattern.
   • 2. 食べて: 「食（た）べて」is the te-form, used to link clauses sequentially. It cannot precede ことがある to form past experience.
   • 4. 食べない: 「食（た）べない」is the negative present. The pattern 〜たことがある strictly requires the た-form (past) — the negation reverses the meaning entirely.

2. 12.あたまが いたい ___ 、今日は 早く かえります。

   1. から 2. のに 3. けれど 4. ても
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   Answer: 1. から

   から (because) is correct here — it expresses a reason/cause: "Because my head hurts, I'll go home early." The most tempting wrong choice is のに (even though), but のに expresses a contradiction or complaint between two clauses. Since going home early logically follows from having a headache (not contradicts it), のに is wrong. から links a cause directly to its natural result.

   • 2. のに: 「のに」means 'even though', expressing an unexpected contrast. Going home early because of a headache is the expected outcome, not a contradiction.
   • 3. けれど: 「けれど」means 'but', a contrastive conjunction. The two clauses here are aligned (cause and natural response), not in contrast.
   • 4. ても: 「ても」means 'even if'. It introduces a concessive condition, but the sentence is stating a straightforward reason, not a condition.

3. 13.わたしは かんじが 少し ___ ようになりました。

   1. 読む 2. 読んで 3. 読める 4. 読まない
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   Answer: 3. 読める

   「〜ようになりました」expresses a change in state, meaning "came to be able to." It requires a plain-form verb that describes the new ability. 読める（よめる） (potential form, "can read") correctly conveys "came to be able to read kanji." The tempting wrong choice 読む（よむ） (dictionary form) seems close, but 読む（よむ）ようになる means "came to read (habitually)" — not expressing ability, which the context of learning kanji clearly implies.

   • 1. 読む: 「読（よ）む」is the plain dictionary form. 読（よ）むようになる means 'came to read habitually', describing a habit change — but the context (kanji learning) is about acquired ability, which needs the potential form.
   • 2. 読んで: 「読（よ）んで」is the te-form. It cannot directly precede ようになる, which requires a plain-form verb describing the new state.
   • 4. 読まない: 「読（よ）まない」is the negative form. 読（よ）まないようになる would mean 'came to stop reading', the opposite of acquiring kanji ability.

4. 14.たいせつな かさを ___ しまいました。

   1. なくす 2. なくした 3. なくして 4. なくさない
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   Answer: 3. なくして

   なくして is correct because the ~て form connects verbs in sequence — here, なくして + しまいました forms the grammar pattern ～てしまう, meaning "to have done something completely/regrettably." This expresses the speaker's regret about losing the umbrella. The key distractor なくした is a plain past tense and cannot grammatically attach to しまいました — you need the て-form to link the two verbs.

   • 1. なくす: 「なくす」is the dictionary form. しまいました requires the te-form preceding it — the dictionary form cannot connect.
   • 2. なくした: 「なくした」is the plain past. Two past tenses cannot stack like this; the structure 〜てしまう demands the te-form.
   • 4. なくさない: 「なくさない」is the negative form. The umbrella was lost, so a negative would invert the meaning.

5. 15.父は わたしに 新しい じしょを ___ 。

   1. あげました 2. もらいました 3. くれました 4. やりました
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   Answer: 3. くれました

   くれました is correct because the father is giving something to the speaker (わたし), and くれる is used when someone gives to the speaker or their in-group. The most tempting wrong choice, あげました, means the speaker gives to someone else — it reverses the direction. もらいました would mean "I received," requiring a different sentence structure (父（ちち）に～もらいました), and やりました implies giving to someone of lower status.

   • 1. あげました: 「あげました」means 'I gave (to someone else)'. Here the speaker is the receiver, so あげる reverses the direction.
   • 2. もらいました: 「もらいました」means 'received', but the structure 父（ちち）は…もらいました is wrong — 'received from the father' would need 父（ちち）に…もらいました.
   • 4. やりました: 「やりました」is for giving to someone of lower status (children, animals, plants). Using it for a father giving to the speaker is socially inappropriate.

6. 16.パーティーの 前に ビールを 買って ___ 。

   1. おきます 2. あります 3. います 4. みます
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   Answer: 1. おきます

   おきます (〜ておく) means to do something in advance or in preparation for a future event — perfect here: "I'll buy beer ahead of the party." The most tempting wrong choice, あります (〜てある), also expresses preparation but describes a resulting state ("beer has been bought"), requiring a non-volitional, object-focused construction. Since the sentence expresses the speaker's intentional preparatory action, おきます is correct.

   • 2. あります: 「あります」forms 〜てある, which describes a non-volitional resulting state (window has been opened). Buying beer for the party is intentional, requiring volitional 〜ておく.
   • 3. います: 「います」forms 〜ている, describing an ongoing action ('is buying'). The sentence is about future preparation, not current activity.
   • 4. みます: 「みます」forms 〜てみる ('try doing'). Trying to buy beer doesn't capture the preparatory nuance — you simply prepare in advance.

7. 17.たくさん べんきょうした ___ 、テストは わるかったです。

   1. から 2. ので 3. のに 4. たら
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   Answer: 3. のに

   のに is correct because it expresses disappointment or surprise at an unexpected result — "Even though I studied a lot, the test went badly." The contrast between effort and poor outcome is exactly what のに conveys. から and ので both mean "because," implying cause-and-effect, which is the opposite nuance. のに is the key word for "even though / despite," signaling an unwanted, contrary result.

   • 1. から: 「から」means 'because'. 'Because I studied a lot, the test was bad' is a causal absurdity — it would say studying caused failure.
   • 2. ので: 「ので」also means 'because' (softer than から). Same problem: it positively links studying to bad results, contradicting the disappointment expressed.
   • 4. たら: 「たら」is conditional ('if / when'). It doesn't fit a stated past fact — the speaker already studied; the contrast needs のに.

8. 18.わたしは一度も北海道へ___ことがありません。

   1. 行く 2. 行った 3. 行って 4. 行き
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   Answer: 2. 行った

   The pattern 「～たことがある／ない」 expresses whether someone has or has not had a particular experience. It requires the plain past (た-form) of the verb before 「ことがある」. So 「行っ（いっ）た + ことがありません」 means 'have never been.' The tempting choice 「行く（いく）」 (dictionary form) + ことがある would mean 'there are times when I go' (a different pattern, ～ことがある meaning 'sometimes'), but with 「一（いち）度（ど）も」 and 「ありません」 the sentence clearly talks about experience, so the た-form is required.

   • 1. 行く: 「行（い）く」(dictionary form) + ことがある means 'there are times when I go' (occasional habit), not past experience.
   • 3. 行って: 「行（い）って」(て-form) connects clauses; it doesn't precede ことがある.
   • 4. 行き: 「行（い）き」is the masu-stem; ことがある needs the past plain form, not the stem.

9. 19.あたまがいたい___、今日ははやく帰ります。

   1. ので 2. のに 3. でも 4. たら
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   Answer: 1. ので

   「～ので」 gives a reason in a soft, polite way and fits 'Because my head hurts, I'll go home early.' 「～のに」 looks similar but expresses unexpected contrast ('even though'), which would mean 'even though my head hurts, I'll go home early' — the opposite logic. Since the second clause is a natural consequence of a headache, only 「ので」 makes sense.

   • 2. のに: 「のに」expresses 'even though' — would mean 'even though my head hurts, I'll go home', framing it as a contradiction. Going home with a headache is the natural action, not a contrast.
   • 3. でも: 「でも」starts a new sentence ('but'), not a clause connector after an adjective.
   • 4. たら: 「たら」is conditional ('if'). The headache is a stated cause, not a hypothetical.

10. 20.わたしはさしみが___ません。

    1. 食べ 2. 食べて 3. 食べられ 4. 食べさせ
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    Answer: 3. 食べられ

    The potential form of an ichidan verb is made by replacing 「る」 with 「られる」: 「食べる（たべる）」 → 「食べ（たべ）られる」 ('can eat'). The negative polite is 「食べ（たべ）られません」 ('cannot eat'). Note the particle 「が」, which is typical for potential form objects. The tempting 「食べ（たべ）させ」 is the causative ('make someone eat'), which doesn't fit the meaning of being unable to eat sashimi.

    • 1. 食べ: 「食（た）べ」is the bare masu-stem. Negative polite needs the full られない form before ません.
    • 2. 食べて: 「食（た）べて」is the て-form. It can't form the negative potential by itself.
    • 4. 食べさせ: 「食（た）べさせ」is the causative ('make eat'), not 'can eat'.

Read the passage, then answer each question.

テニス部のみなさんへ。 来週の月曜日、雨が降ったら練習は中止です。雨でなければ、午後三時から体育館で練習します。ラケットとボールを必ず持ってきてください。

1. 21.月曜日、雨が降ったら、練習はどうなりますか。

   1. 中止になる 2. 午後五時から始まる 3. 火曜日に行う 4. 体育館で行う
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   Answer: 1. 中止になる

   Direct statement: 雨（あめ）が降っ（ふっ）たら練習（れんしゅう）は中止（ちゅうし）です ('if it rains, practice is cancelled'). 体育（たいいく）館（かん）で行う（おこなう） is what happens IF it does NOT rain (雨（あめ）でなければ), so it's the inverse condition. The other choices aren't mentioned.

   • 2. 午後五時から始まる: Wrong time and wrong condition — the notice says 午後三時 (3 PM), not 5 PM, and only when it doesn't rain. If it rains, practice is cancelled entirely.
   • 3. 火曜日に行う: No make-up day is announced — if it rains on Monday, the notice just says 中止. Tuesday isn't mentioned.
   • 4. 体育館で行う: That's the inverse condition (雨でなければ — if it doesn't rain). The question asks specifically about the rain case, where practice is cancelled.