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1 to 10, and the numbers with two readings
The Sino-Japanese set is the backbone. The complication is that 4, 7, and 9 each have two readings, and in daily life yon (4), nana (7), and kyuu (9) dominate: shi (4) sounds like 死 "death" and ku (9) like 苦 "suffering", so both get avoided.
| Number | Sino-Japanese (default) | Native Japanese (counting objects) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 一 ichi | 一つ hitotsu |
| 2 | 二 ni | 二つ futatsu |
| 3 | 三 san | 三つ mittsu |
| 4 | 四 yon / shi | 四つ yottsu |
| 5 | 五 go | 五つ itsutsu |
| 6 | 六 roku | 六つ muttsu |
| 7 | 七 nana / shichi | 七つ nanatsu |
| 8 | 八 hachi | 八つ yattsu |
| 9 | 九 kyuu / ku | 九つ kokonotsu |
| 10 | 十 juu | 十 too |
The native set stops at ten; above that everything switches to Sino-Japanese. It also doubles as a safety net: if you cannot remember the right counter for something, saying futatsu ("two of them") will be understood in almost any shop.
11 to 100: the easy part
Two-digit numbers are refreshingly regular: 11 is 十一 (juuichi), literally ten-one, and 20 is 二十 (nijuu), two-ten. There are no irregular forms like "eleven" or "twelve", so once you know 1-10 you can count to 99 immediately.
| Place | Base form | Exceptions (where the sound shifts) |
|---|---|---|
| Tens (十) | juu (20 nijuu, 50 gojuu) | None |
| Hundreds (百) | hyaku (200 nihyaku) | 300 sanbyaku, 600 roppyaku, 800 happyaku |
| Thousands (千) | sen (2,000 nisen) | 3,000 sanzen, 8,000 hassen |
| Ten-thousands (万) | man (10,000 is always ichiman, never just man) | None |
The place that trips up English speakers is 万 (man, ten thousand). Japanese groups digits in fours rather than threes, so 100,000 is 十万 (juuman, "ten ten-thousands") rather than "one hundred thousand". Converting through English grouping is where the errors come from.
Counters: the word changes with the object
Japanese attaches a counter word to the number depending on what is being counted: the same idea as "two sheets of paper" or "three head of cattle", but pervasive. The difficulty is that many counters change sound depending on the number in front of them.
| Counter | What it counts | Readings for 1, 2, 3 |
|---|---|---|
| 人 (nin) | People | hitori, futari, sannin (1 and 2 are irregular) |
| 個 (ko) | Small round things: apples, eggs | ikko, niko, sanko |
| 本 (hon) | Long thin things: pens, bottles, umbrellas | ippon, nihon, sanbon |
| 枚 (mai) | Flat things: paper, shirts, tickets | ichimai, nimai, sanmai (regular) |
| 杯 (hai) | Cupfuls and bowlfuls: coffee, rice | ippai, nihai, sanbai |
| 匹 (hiki) | Small animals: dogs, cats, fish | ippiki, nihiki, sanbiki |
You do not need all of them at once. Lock in 人, 個, and 枚 first and add the rest as they come up. When you blank, falling back on hitotsu / futatsu keeps the conversation moving.
Quick check.How do you read 4 o'clock in Japanese?
Where numbers show up
The goal is catching numbers in the wild rather than reciting the list: prices in 円 (yen), times in 時 and 分, and phone numbers. Each has its own reading conventions.
- Prices: ¥1,500 is sen-gohyaku-en. Cashiers speak fast, so the irregular hundreds and thousands (sanzen, hassen) are worth drilling in advance.
- Times: 4 o'clock is yoji, 7 is shichiji, and 9 is kuji, the readings avoided elsewhere, which makes clock time a classic trap.
- Phone numbers: read digit by digit, with the hyphen spoken as no. Here 4, 7, and 9 are always yon, nana, and kyuu to avoid confusion.
- Dates: the 1st through the 10th keep native readings (tsuitachi, futsuka, mikka…) and have to be memorized separately.
Recognizing numbers on paper and catching them at speed are separate skills. If you know the table but still miss prices at a register, the gap is pace rather than knowledge.
Frequently asked questions
Is 4 in Japanese yon or shi?
Both exist, but yon is the safe everyday choice because shi is a homophone of 死 ("death"). The exceptions worth memorizing: 4 o'clock is yoji and April is shigatsu.
When do I use hitotsu instead of ichi?
Use the native set (hitotsu, futatsu) when counting objects, and the Sino set (ichi, ni) for numbers themselves, prices, and identifiers. The native set only goes to ten; beyond that everything is Sino-Japanese.
What if I don't know the right counter?
Fall back on hitotsu / futatsu, which will be understood in nearly any shop. Learn 人 (people), 個 (small objects), and 枚 (flat things) solidly first, then add others as they come up.
Photos: 小田急4000系ファン, CC0; Mokkie, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
