In this lesson, we will study Japanese numbers. Let's start with one through ten. |
1 - 10
rei or zero
ichi
ni
san
shi or yon
go
roku
nana or shichi
hachi
kyuu or ku
juu
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zero
one
two
three
four
five
six
seven
eight
nine
ten
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Note that several of the numbers have two pronunciations. Each pronunciation is used in specific situations. Sometimes either pronunciation is acceptable. |
11 - 19
The numbers from 11 to 19 are formed by putting the appropriate number after ten. Thus 11 is juu + ichi = juuichi.
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juu-ichi
juu-ni
juu-san
juu-shi or juu-yon
juu-go
juu-roku
juu-nana or juu-shichi
juu-hachi
juu-kyuu or juu-ku
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11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
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20 - 90
The numbers from 20 to 90 are formed by putting the appropriate number before ten. Thus 20 is ni + juu = nijuu. Think of it like saying 'two tens.'
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ni-juu
san-juu
yon-juu
go-juu
roku-juu
nana-juu
hachi-juu
kyuu-juu |
twenty
thirty
fourty (Not shi-juu)
fifty
sixty
seventy
eighty
ninety (Not ku-juu) |
Other numbers can be formed in ways similar to the 1-19 and 20-90 ways. For example, 21 is formed by making twenty, then adding one. 21 = ni + juu + ichi = nijuuichi. Or, 'two tens and one' is twenty one.
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Examples:
san-juu-ni
roku-juu-nana
yon-juu-hachi
kyuu-juu-ku
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32
67
48
99
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100 - 900
One hundred is hyaku. The numbers from 200 to 900 are formed like the numbers from 20-90. Be careful as there are some exceptions in pronunciation.
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nihyaku
sanbyaku
yonhyaku
gohyaku
roppyaku
nanahyaku
happyaku
kyuuhyaku |
200
300 *
400
500
600 *
700
800 *
900
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Note the exceptions in pronunciation for the numbers with asterisks. |
Larger Numbers:
sen
man
juu-man
hyaku-man
sen-man
oku
|
thousand
ten thousand
hundred thousand
million
ten million
hundred million |