If you’re like me and mostly want to speak Japanese, not read or write it, this post is for you. Everything here is written in romaji (the Romanized version of Japanese). If you’re interested in learning hiragana, katakana, or kanji, I recommend using other resources, or even asking ChatGPT for a custom plan.
(Feel free to check out the r/languagelearning and r/LearnJapanese subreddits for extra resources or recommendations).
🔰 I don’t have any certificates, just a learner sharing what I know, so if I get something wrong, feel free to double-check or correct me!
💬 I’m still learning Japanese too, (on my journey from bronze to grandmaster), I document everything in my weekly language progress logs.
Every week I post a page with:
- A short speaking video or update
- My test assessment
- Notes and improvements
- What rank I’m at (from Bronze to Grandmaster)
👉 Check out the Language Progress Glossary Here
Japanese has over 500+ measure counters, but don’t worry, you’ll only use a small handful regularly in daily conversation. This guide focuses on the more essential and most useful counters, along with how they behave when paired with certain numbers.
🧠 A quick heads-up:
Some counters conjugate differently depending on the number. Japanese is a phonetic language, and it likes things to flow smoothly. That means sounds sometimes change for ease of pronunciation, especially with 1, 3, 6, 8, and 10. Even native speakers mess this up, so don’t stress too much.
⚠️ Note: Even though 3 is an irregular, it’s not always the case.
📦 Everyday Counters
–tsu (つ) – General items (used for things 1–10 only)
This is a generic counter and great for beginners.
| Number | Romaji |
|---|---|
| 1 | hitotsu |
| 2 | futatsu |
| 3 | mittsu |
| 4 | yottsu |
| 5 | itsutsu |
| 6 | muttsu |
| 7 | nanatsu |
| 8 | yattsu |
| 9 | kokonotsu |
| 10 | too |
🧾 Example:
- Mikan o mittsu tabemashita – I ate three tangerines.
–nin (人) – People
🧾 Example:
- Go-nin imasu – There are five people.
- Ashita no pati ni roku-nin kimashita – Six people came to the party tomorrow.
–mai (枚) – Flat objects (paper, plates, shirts)
🧾 Example:
- San-mai no kami o kudasai – Please give me three sheets of paper.
- Shatsu o yon-mai kaimashita – I bought four shirts.
–hon/bon/pon (本) – Long cylindrical objects (pens, bottles)
The sound changes depending on the number:
🧾 Example:
- Pen o ippon kudasai – Give me one pen.
- Nomimono wa roppon arimasu – There are six drinks (in bottles).
- Yon-hon no pen ga hitsuyou desu – Four pens are needed.
–ko (個) – Small, round/compact objects (boxes, apples, pieces)
🧾 Example:
- Ringo o nikko tabemashita – I ate two apples.
- Kashi o jukkō moraimashita – I received 10 sweets/snacks.
–hiki / biki / piki (匹) – Small animals (cats, dogs, fish)
🧾 Example:
- Neko o ippiki katteimasu – I have one cat.
- Sanbiki no inu ga imasu – There are three dogs.
- Happiki no sakana ga imasu – There are eight fish.
–dai (台) – Machines, vehicles (cars, phones, TVs, fridges)
🧾 Example:
- Kuruma o ichidai motteimasu – I own one car.
- Denwa ga nandaime desu ka? – Which number phone is this?
–satsu (冊) – Bound items (books, notebooks)
🧾 Example:
- Hon o issatsu yomimashita – I read one book.
- Zasshi o sansatsu kaimashita – I bought three magazines.
–sai (歳) – Age
🧾 Example:
- Watashi wa nijuusai desu – I’m 20 years old.
- Kanojo wa jussai desu – She’s 10 years old.
–fun / pun (分) – Minutes
🧾 Example:
- Ippun matte kudasai – Please wait one minute.
- Happun de tsukimasu – I’ll arrive in eight minutes.
–ji (時) – Time (o’clock)
🧾 Example:
- San-ji ni hajimemasu – It starts at 3 o’clock.
- Roku-ji ni okimashita – I woke up at 6.
🕒 Frequency & Time-Related Counters
–kai (回) – Times (how many times something happened)
🧾 Example:
- Ikkai ikimashita – I went once.
- Kono eiga wo sankai mimashita – I watched this movie three times.
–nichi (日) – Days (specific or number of days)
🧾 Example:
- Mikka yasumimashita – I took a 3-day break.
- Hatsuka ni kaerimasu – I’ll return on the 20th.
–shuukan (週間) – Weeks
🧾 Example:
- Isshuukan hatarakimashita – I worked for one week.
- Sanshuukan no ryokou desu – It’s a 3-week trip.
–kagetsu (か月) – Months
🧾 Example:
- Nikkagetsu hatarakimashita – I worked for two months.
–nen (年) – Years
🧾 Example:
- San-nen nihon ni sundeimasu – I’ve lived in Japan for three years.
–jikan (時間) – Hours (duration)
🧾 Example:
- Ichi-jikan machimashita – I waited for one hour.
- Roku-jikan hatarakimashita – I worked for six hours.
📘 Other Useful Counters
–kai / gai (階) – Floors of buildings
🧾 Example:
- Gakkou wa nikai ni arimasu – The school is on the second floor.
–chaku (着) – Clothing (suits, outfits)
🧾 Example:
- Kono fuku o nissetsu kaimashita – I bought two outfits.
–hai / pai / bai (杯) – Cups/glasses of drink
🧾 Example:
- Koucha o ippai nomimashita – I drank one cup of tea.
- Biiru o sanbai kudasai – Three beers, please.
–soku (足) – Pairs of footwear (shoes, socks)
🧾 Example:
- Kutsu o issoku kaimashita – I bought a pair of shoes.
–ken (軒) – Buildings (houses, shops)
🧾 Example:
- Niken no ie ga arimasu – There are two houses.
–kumi (組) – Groups, pairs (teams, class sets)
🧾 Example:
- Futatsu no kumi ga arimasu – There are two groups.
–wa (羽) – Birds and rabbits
🧾 Example:
- Niwa ni sanba no tori ga imasu – There are three birds in the garden.
⚠️ Irregular Sound Shifts (Why They Happen)
Counters often change pronunciation with numbers like 1, 3, 6, 8, and 10 to keep the rhythm smooth.
- 1 (ichi)
- 3 (san) (sometimes)
- 6 (roku)
- 8 (hachi)
- 10 (juu)
Japanese prefers smooth, rhythmic sounds, so the initial consonant of the counter often changes to something softer or stronger (like h → p or s → z).
Even native speakers mess these up sometimes, and unless you’re writing or speaking formally, most people will still understand you just fine.
🔁 Irregular Counter Chart
| Counter | 1 | 3 | 6 | 8 | 10 | Change Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 分 (fun/pun) | ippun | sanpun | roppun | happun | juppun | f → p |
| 本 (hon/bon/pon) | ippon | sanbon | roppon | happon | juppon | h → p/b |
| 回 (kai) | ikkai | sankai | rokkai | hakkai | juukkai | stays as k |
| 匹 (hiki/biki/piki) | ippiki | sanbiki | roppiki | happiki | juppiki | h → p/b |
| 杯 (hai/pai/bai) | ippai | sanbai | roppai | happai | juppai | h → p/b |
| 冊 (satsu) | issatsu | sansatsu | rokusatsu | hassatsu | jussatsu | s → ss/zs |
| 足 (soku) | issoku | sansoku | roppoku | hassoku | jussoku | s → ss/p |
| 階 (kai/gai) | ikkai | sankai | rokkai | hakkai | juukkai | (mostly same as kai) |
🧠 Important Pattern Rule
The main thing to remember is:
Only the final digit matters, even if the number is 11, 21, 101, etc.
So treat 21 like 1, 32 like 2, and so on.
🎯 Consonant Sound Shifts (Euphonic Changes)
When attaching a number to a counter (like pun/fun for minutes or hiki for small animals), Japanese modifies the consonant sound for smoother pronunciation. This is called rendaku. It’s why you see changes like:
- hiki → ippiki, sanbiki, roppiki
(Here, hiki becomes biki or piki depending on the number.)
These aren’t random, the sound shift depends on:
- The ending number
- The starting consonant of the counter word
Fortunately, each counter follows a consistent pattern. Once you learn how a counter like hiki behaves with each number, the same logic applies every time.
📌 For example:
- 1 small animal = ippiki
- 3 small animals = sanbiki
- 6 small animals = roppiki
These sound shifts exist for many counters and always follow consistent rules based on the number + the counter’s starting consonant. (I won’t be listing all of them.)
✅ Final Tips
- Don’t get overwhelmed by all the counters.
- Focus on the ones you’ll use most in daily life.
- Japanese people will still understand you even if you mess up some of the sound shifts!
🧠 Practice Tips:
- Make flashcards with verbs + counters.
- Use ChatGPT for quizzes (e.g., “How do I say ‘3 books’?”).
- Try making your own sentences and get feedback.
🧱 Why I Learn This Way
While I continue learning Japanese and other languages, I also make money online through beermoney apps. It’s not much, but it helps me feel like I’m turning my free time into something more productive and fun.
👇 Check out my glossaries below
💸 Beermoney Glossary:
Curious how much money you can realistically make online from surveys, games, ads, and small tasks? Check out my Beermoney Glossary page, where I break down every app and site I’ve tried with videos, payment proof, and my personal experiences. I always recommend doing beermoney while watching shows, anime, gaming, or handling small tasks around the house.
👉 Beermoney reviews
📈 Monthly Earnings Tracker:
Want to see exactly what I cashed out every month? My Monthly Earnings Tracker has screenshots of my app cashouts, plus updates on my trading and investment accounts, all in one place, month by month.
👉 Monthly earnings
🌍 Language Learning Glossary:
Curious what languages I’m learning? Check out my Language Learning Glossary for weekly progress updates. I post short speaking videos, track my progress, share my personal study notes, and break down the rank criteria I follow.
👉 Language progress