Japanese numbers: 1 to 10
| Hiragana | English | Letter-by-letter breakdown | Phonetics |
|---|---|---|---|
| いち | one | い (i)ち(chi) | ichi |
| に | two | に (ni) | ni |
| さん | three | さ(sa) ん (n) | san |
| し / よん | four | し(shi) / よ(yo)ん(n) | shi / yon |
| ご | five | ご (go | go |
| ろく | six | ろ(ro)く(ku) | roku |
| しち / なな | seven | し(shi)ち(chi) / なな(nana) | shichi / nana |
| はち | eight | は(ha/wa)ち(chi) | hachi |
| きゅう/く | nine | きゅ(kyu)う(u) /く(ku) | kyu / ku |
| じゅう | ten | じゅ(ju)う(u) | juu |
The best bit? If you can memorise the names for Japanese numbers 1 to 10, you’re well on your way to being able to say any Japanese number.
Top tip:
You’ll notice that 4, 7 and 9 all have two possible readings.
These two names are basically interchangeable when you’re counting in Japanese. Any native speaker will know both versions.
In times past, the Japanese created the preferable alternatives, yon, nana, and kyu, because of superstition around the sounds shi, shichi and ku (which can mean “death”, “place of death” and “agony”). But in practice, the different readings are largely just chosen based on context – telling time versus counting things, for example.
You’ll notice that, after 10, only those preferred pronunciations – yon, nana and kyu – are used for 4, 7 and . So for double-digit numbers ending in a 0, like 40, we usually say _yonjuu and not shi juu.
Counting from 11 to 19 in Japanese
| Hiragana | English | Phonetics |
|---|---|---|
| じゅういち | eleven | juu-ichi |
| じゅうに | twelve | juu-ni |
| じゅうさん | thirteen | juu-san |
| じゅうよん | fourteen | juu-yon* |
| じゅうご | fifteen | juu-go |
| じゅうろく | sixteen | juu-roku |
| じゅうなな | seventeen | juu-nana* |
| じゅうはち | eighteen | juu-hachi |
| じゅうきゅう | nineteen | juu-kyu* |
Japanese numbers: simple double-digit numbers
| Hiragana | English | Phonetics |
|---|---|---|
| にじゅう | twenty | ni-juu |
| さんじゅう | thirty | san-juu |
| よんじゅう | forty | yon-juu |
| ごじゅう | fifty | go-juu |
| ろくじゅう | sixty | roku-juu |
| ななじゅう | seventy | nana-juu |
| はちじゅう | eighty | hachi-juu |
| きゅうじゅう | ninety | kyu-juu |
| ひゃく | one hundred | hyaku |
Complex double-digit Japanese numbers
| Number | Formation | Hiragana | Phonetics |
|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | two-ten-three | にじゅうさん | ni-juu-san |
| 49 | four-ten-nine | よんじゅうきゅう | yon-juu-kyu |
| 58 | five-ten-eight | ごじゅうはち | go-juu-hachi |
| 97 | nine-ten-seven | きゅうじゅうなな | kyu-juu-nana |
