四し

also: よん · よ

し

Common wordJLPTN5Freq.FrequencyTop 2,000

Meanings

1

The number four. Reading よん is preferred in isolation; し is common in compounds and counting but may be avoided due to its association with death. 肆 is a formal variant used in legal documents.

机つくえの上うえにリンゴが四よっつあります。

There are four apples on the desk.

四し月がつは新しん学がっ期きの始はじまりです。

April is the start of the new school year.

Kanji

四four
肆four

Related words

四よっつN5
四つ is the native Japanese numeral used for counting concrete items (よっつ), while 四 is the Sino-Japanese numeral used in math, dates, and compound words.
フォア
四 is the ordinary Japanese numeral for 4 used in everyday counting, while フォア is a katakana loan mostly limited to names, titles, and sports/entertainment terms.

Politeness

ほしいままpolite 丁寧語
肆 is the formal, legal-document variant of 四 used to prevent alteration of the numeral, much like 壱 for 一.

Don't confuse with

死しN1
死 (death) shares the reading し with 四, which is why 四 is often read よん instead to avoid the association.
士しN2
士 (as in 学士, 弁護士) is pronounced し just like 四 but means a professional or scholar, not the number.
七しちN5
七's reading しち can be confused with 四's reading し, so なな is preferred for seven and よん for four in spoken counting.

Written forms

四Usage89%
- よん
  Standard kanji spelling; the reading よん is the most common standalone pronunciation.
- し
  Common in counting, compounds, and set phrases; し is avoided in some contexts due to homophony with 死 (death).
- よ
  Rare standalone reading; mostly appears in specific compounds or traditional counting.

Etymology

Native Japanese numeral; the kanji 四 is a pictograph originally representing a square divided into four parts. The reading よん derives from the native Japanese counting system, while し is the Sino-Japanese reading.

４Usage10%

し
よん
Arabic numeral form, common in horizontal writing and informal contexts.

シUsage<1%

よんUsage<1%

よUsage<1%

ヨンUsage<1%

ヨUsage0%

肆し

Formal kanji used in legal and financial documents to prevent forgery.