The most common Japanese nouns: 100 everyday words

100 everyday Japanese nouns

Each noun is in its usual spelling with a Hepburn reading. Where a kanji has more than one reading, the one given is the reading for the word on its own: 日 is hi (day), though in 日曜日 it is nichi. This is the nouns pack the Contos web app uses for flashcard review.

How do you say "two" of something? Counters

A Japanese noun doesn't change for one or many. 猫 (neko) is a cat or cats, and context or a number tells you which. Numbers don't sit directly on the noun; they join a counter that depends on the shape or kind of thing. The general counter つ works for most objects up to ten, so you can always fall back on it.

ある or いる: there is, there are

Japanese has two verbs for "there is", and the noun decides which. ある (aru) is for things, plants and places; いる (iru) is for people and animals. The same pair is how Japanese says "have": 友達が三人います, literally "three friends exist", is I have three friends.

The place where something is takes に with いる and ある, but where something happens takes で: 図書館にいます (I'm at the library), 図書館で本を読みます (I read books at the library).

Family words, formal words and words with two meanings

母 (haha) and 父 (chichi) are for talking about your own mother and father to other people. For someone else's parents, or when you speak to your own, use お母さん (okāsan) and お父さん (otōsan).

• 近所の人 (kinjo no hito), the list's word for neighbour, is anyone who lives nearby. For the people next door, say お隣さん (otonari-san); 隣人 (rinjin) is the written word.
• 街 (machi, city) is a town or city as a place of streets and shops; 町, read the same way, is a town as an administrative unit. The formal word for a city, 都市 (toshi), is mostly written.
• 心 (kokoro) is the heart of feelings. The heart as an organ is 心臓 (shinzō), which is in the health and body list.
• もの (mono, thing) is written in kana, as it usually is; the kanji is 物. For abstract things, such as a matter or an event, Japanese uses こと (koto).
• 月 (tsuki) is the list's word for month, and it also means moon; 日 (hi) is both day and sun, and context tells them apart. With numbers, months are named with gatsu (三月, sangatsu: March) and counted with か月 (一か月待ちました, ikkagetsu machimashita: I waited a month).