Basic Numbers (1-10)
| Number | Kanji | Hiragana | Romaji |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 一 | いち | ichi |
| 2 | 二 | に | ni |
| 3 | 三 | さん | san |
| 4 | 四 | し / よん | shi / yon |
| 5 | 五 | ご | go |
| 6 | 六 | ろく | roku |
| 7 | 七 | しち / なな | shichi / nana |
| 8 | 八 | はち | hachi |
| 9 | 九 | きゅう / く | kyuu / ku |
| 10 | 十 | じゅう | juu |
Note on 4, 7, 9: The numbers 4, 7, and 9 have two common readings. Yon, nana, and kyuu are generally preferred. Shi can sound like 死 (death), so it's often avoided.
Larger Numbers
Japanese numbers are constructed logically. For 11-19, you say "ten" plus the number. For 20, 30, etc., you say the number plus "ten".
| Number | Kanji | Reading | Logic |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | 十一 | じゅういち (juuichi) | 10 + 1 |
| 14 | 十四 | じゅうよん (juuyon) | 10 + 4 |
| 20 | 二十 | にじゅう (nijuu) | 2 x 10 |
| 35 | 三十五 | さんじゅうご (sanjuugo) | (3 x 10) + 5 |
| 100 | 百 | ひゃく (hyaku) | Hundred |
| 1,000 | 千 | せん (sen) | Thousand |
| 10,000 | 万 | まん (man) | Ten Thousand |
Important Reading Changes
When certain numbers combine, their pronunciation changes to make them easier to say. This is most common with hundreds and thousands.
| Number | Kanji | Reading (Romaji) | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 300 | 三百 | sanbyaku | hyaku → byaku |
| 600 | 六百 | roppyaku | roku + hyaku → roppyaku |
| 800 | 八百 | happyaku | hachi + hyaku → happyaku |
| 3,000 | 三千 | sanzen | sen → zen |
| 8,000 | 八千 | hassen | hachi + sen → hassen |
Putting It All Together
| Number | Kanji | Reading (Romaji) |
|---|---|---|
| 479 | 四百七十九 | yonhyaku nana-juu kyuu |
| 1,984 | 千九百八十四 | sen kyuu-hyaku hachi-juu yon |
| 2025 | 二千二十五 | ni-sen ni-juu go |
| 12,500 | 一万二千五百 | ichi-man ni-sen go-hyaku |
Katakana for Numbers: While uncommon for general counting, Katakana is sometimes used in specific contexts like writing prices on menus (e.g., ビール ¥五〇〇) for stylistic reasons or to prevent fraud on legal documents.