N4 Vocabulary · Test 73

声 is read こえ (koe), meaning 'voice' (a person's or animal's voice). In the sentence 'りんさんはいい声で歌います' (Lin sings with a good voice), こえ is the correct reading. Option 3 is correct.

• 1おと (音) means 'sound' in general (non-vocal sounds like noise, music sounds), not a person's voice.
• 2おん (音) is the on-reading of 音, meaning 'sound' in compounds, not the word for a person's voice.
• 4せい (声) is the on-reading of 声, used in certain compounds (e.g. 声明 せいめい), but the standalone word for 'voice' is こえ.

• 声こえ — voice (human/animal)
• 音おと — sound (general, non-vocal)

歌います is the ます-form of the verb 歌う (うたう, 'to sing'). Drop the final う and add います: うたいます. Option 1 is correct.

• 2うだいます has the wrong dakuten on the second syllable — the verb is うたう, not うだう.
• 3おたいます has the wrong initial kana — the verb starts with う, not お.
• 4おだいます has both the wrong initial kana (お instead of う) and an incorrect dakuten (だ instead of た).

• 歌うたう — to sing
• 歌うたいます — sings (polite ます-form)

「近所」is read「きんじょ」. 「近」is「きん」and「所」is「じょ」in this compound. The word means 'neighborhood' or 'vicinity'.

• 1「きんしょ」has the wrong voicing —「所」is voiced here (じょ, not しょ).
• 3「きんしょう」adds an extra long vowel う that is not present.
• 4「きんじょう」also adds an extra long vowel う that is not present.

• 近所きんじょ — neighborhood, vicinity

「火事」is read「かじ」. 「火」is「か」and「事」is「じ」(voiced) in this compound. It means 'fire' (as in a conflagration).

• 2「かち」lacks the voicing on the second character (ち instead of じ).
• 3「ひじ」uses the kun-yomi「ひ」for「火」, which is wrong in this compound.
• 4「ひち」also uses the kun-yomi「ひ」and lacks voicing.

• 火事かじ — fire (conflagration)

「銀行」is read「ぎんこう」. 「銀」is「ぎん」(voiced initial) and「行」is「こう」. It means 'bank' (financial institution).

• 1「きんこう」lacks the voicing on「銀」(き instead of ぎ).
• 2「きんごう」lacks voicing on「銀」and wrongly voices「行」(ごう instead of こう).
• 4「ぎんごう」wrongly voices「行」(ごう instead of こう).

• 銀行ぎんこう — bank (financial institution)

かりる means 'to borrow' and is written 借りる. The sentence says 'When borrowing money, it is better to think carefully.' Option 3 借りる is correct.

• 1賃りる is not a valid word; 賃(ちん) relates to 'rent/fare' and is a lookalike distractor.
• 2買いる is not a valid word form; 買う (to buy) does not conjugate to 買りる.
• 4代りる is not a valid word; 代(だい/かわる) relates to 'substitute/price' and is a lookalike distractor.

• 借かりる — to borrow

ふとくて is the て-form of ふとい (太い, thick/fat). The sentence says the uncle's neck is thick and short. Option 2 太くて is correct.

• 1犬くて is not a valid word; 犬(いぬ) means 'dog' and has no て-form adjective.
• 3天くて is not a valid word; 天(てん) means 'sky/heaven' and cannot form this adjective.
• 4丈くて is not a valid word; 丈(じょう/たけ) means 'height/length' and does not produce ふとくて.

• 太ふとい — thick, fat (of objects or body parts)

みじかい is written 短い and means 'short (in length/time)'. The sentence says the uncle's neck is thick and short. Option 1 短い is correct.

• 2短るい is an invalid kanji form; the adjective is 短い, not 短るい.
• 3失い（うしない）is the ます-stem of 失う (to lose), a lookalike with a different meaning and reading.
• 4矢い is not a real word; 矢(や) means 'arrow' and cannot form this adjective.

• 短みじかい — short (in length or duration)

どんどん (dondon) means 'rapidly, steadily, more and more' and describes continuous progression or change over time. Option 3, あかちゃんは どんどん 大きく なります ('A baby grows bigger and bigger / grows rapidly'), is the correct usage: どんどん naturally modifies a verb of gradual change (大きくなる = to grow big), expressing steady, ongoing development.

• 1えいがを 見て どんどん わらいました ('I laughed rapidly while watching a movie') — どんどん does not describe repeated or continuous laughing. Laughing is not a gradual process of change; it is an action. A more natural adverb here would be げらげら (gērageēra, laughing loudly) or たくさん (takusan, a lot).
• 2休みの 日は どんどん ねて います ('On days off I sleep steadily/rapidly') — どんどん does not fit the state of sleeping. Sleeping is not a process that progresses or increases steadily in the way どんどん implies. A natural alternative would be ぐうぐう (gūgū, soundly) or ずっと (zutto, continuously).
• 4オートバイが どんどん はやいです ('A motorcycle is rapidly fast') — どんどん is an adverb that modifies verbs of change/progression, not an adjective like はやい (hayai, fast) used as a simple description. You could say どんどん はやく なります ('becomes faster and faster'), but not どんどん はやいです.

• どんどん — rapidly, steadily, more and more — used for continuous change/progression
• 大おおきくなる — to grow big, to become larger

かりる means 'to borrow' and is written 借りる. The sentence says 'When borrowing money, it is better to think carefully.' Option 3 借りる is correct.

• 1賃りる is not a valid word; 賃(ちん) relates to 'rent/fare' and is a lookalike distractor.
• 2買いる is not a valid word form; 買う (to buy) does not conjugate to 買りる.
• 4代りる is not a valid word; 代(だい/かわる) relates to 'substitute/price' and is a lookalike distractor.

• 借かりる — to borrow