Which Japanese words should I learn first?

The easiest words of grammar and everyday life: basic verbs, small structural words, polite phrases, numbers, family, food. This page gathers 100 of them.

What comes after these 100 words?

Carry on topic by topic: each list gives 100 words sorted into three levels. The KoKo app gathers +6,000 Japanese words and brings each one back at the right moment.

Can I print this list or save it as a PDF?

Yes. The “Print the list” button at the top of the page opens your device’s print dialog: choose to save as PDF to keep the 100 words and their translation, with nothing else around them.

Your first 100 Japanese words

New to Japanese? Here are 100 easy words to start with: verbs, the small words of grammar and everyday vocabulary, translated into English.

These words come from the 26 grammar and everyday-life topics of KoKo. The app holds 2,397 words at this level.

Grammar 24 words

Japanese	English
言う	to say
読む	to read
笑う	to laugh
殺す	to kill
低い	low
良い	good
生	raw
硬い	hard
そこに	there
ここに	here
下手に	badly
少し	little
-に	toPreposition, movement in the direction of a place
-から	fromProvenance, origin
そして	and
または	or
そこに	thereAdverbial pronoun of place, replaces a complement
この	thisDemonstrative determiner, masculine before a consonant
いくらかの	somePartitive article, masculine singular
それの	of it
入ってくる	to come in
乗る	to get on
返却する	to give back
抜け出す	to get out

Everyday life 76 words

Japanese	English
いいえ	no
はい	yes
ありがとう	thank you
やあ	hiInformal greeting
一	one
十	ten
少数	few
六	six
終わり	end
五月	May
夏	summer
八月	August
骨	boneHard part of the skeleton
首	neck
背中	back
鼻	nose
あざ	bruise
安静	rest
健康	health
ウイルス	virus
友達	friend
赤ちゃん	baby
息子	son
夫	husbandEveryday use
狂った	crazy
失望した	disappointed
気まずさ	embarrassment
喜び	joy
鍵	key
ベッド	bed
壁	wall
床	floor
ねじ	screw
木材	wood
くぎ	nail
接着剤	glue
ストッキング	stockings
襟	collar
上品	smart
革	leather
にんにく	garlic
小麦	wheat
水	water
ジュース	juice
有機	organic
鉢	bowl
空腹	hunger
味	flavour
袋	bag
値段が高い	expensive
暗証番号	PIN code
費用	cost
通り	street
鉄道駅	train station
公園	park
地図	map
バス	bus
観光バス	coach
オートバイ	motorbike
港	harbour
便	flight
宿泊料金明細	bill
名所	site
案内人	guide
峠	mountain pass
東	east
湖	lake
くちばし	beak
雄鶏	rooster
巣	nest
金	gold
アーチ	arch
鉄	iron
リンク	link
ページ	page
通話	call

Mini quiz

5 words from this page, picked at random. Find their translation.

Frequently asked questions

Which Japanese words should I learn first?: The easiest words of grammar and everyday life: basic verbs, small structural words, polite phrases, numbers, family, food. This page gathers 100 of them.
What comes after these 100 words?: Carry on topic by topic: each list gives 100 words sorted into three levels. The KoKo app gathers +6,000 Japanese words and brings each one back at the right moment.
Can I print this list or save it as a PDF?: Yes. The “Print the list” button at the top of the page opens your device’s print dialog: choose to save as PDF to keep the 100 words and their translation, with nothing else around them.

How KoKo makes words stick

These lists come from KoKo, the app to learn Japanese vocabulary on iPhone.