Activities: "Japanese counters: What are they and how to use them?"

First, let’s complete the table below (you can use hiranaga or romaji). How many have you memorized? Remember, this is not a test, and you can always check the article!

• #	Kanji	Reading
  1	一 つ
  2	二つ
  3	三つ
  4	四つ
  5	五つ

  #	Kanji	Reading
  6	六つ
  7	七つ
  8	八つ
  9	九つ
  10	十つ

• ??	幾つ	(how many / how old)

Now, let’s count things using the counter つ! Fill the blanks below.

• うちの菜園でスイカが採れました。
  Uchi no hatake de suika ga toremashita.
  We harvested five watermelons from our vegetable garden.

• 先生、質問があります。
  Sensei, shitsumon ga arimasu.
  Teacher, I have three questions.

• 犯行現場から指紋が見つかった。
  Hankō genba kara shimon ga mitsukatta.
  One fingerprint was found in the crime scene.

• ハイキングに行って、きれいな湖を見つけた。
  Haikingu ni itte kireina mizu’umi o mitsuketa.
  I went hiking and found two beautiful lakes.

• • A:

    ドーナツですね。ですか。
    Dōnatsu desu ne. desu ka.
    Donuts, right? How many?

  • B:

    ください。
    kudasai.
    Nine, please.

Let’s practice counting various things! Complete the following short Q&A dialogues, using the pictures as your clues (try counting aloud in Japanese!) In this exercise, you need to use either 個[ko], 本[hon], or 枚[mai]. For practice, please spell them out in hiragana or romaji. For bonus points (though it’s not a test:), can you find the ones that can be replaced with つ?

• 色鉛筆[iro enpitsu](colored pencil)	T-シャツ[tii-shatsu](T-shirt)	おにぎり[onigiri](rice ball)
  写真[shashin](photo)	プレゼント[purezento](present)	木[ki](tree)

• • A:

    色鉛筆がありますか。
    Iroenpitsu ga arimasu ka.
    How many color pencils are there?

  • B:

    あります。
    arimasu.
    There are .

• • A:

    T-シャツを持っていますか。
    Tii-shatsu o motte imasu ka.
    How many T-shirts do you have?

  • B:

    持っています。
    motte imasu.
    I have .

• • A:

    おにぎりを作りましたか。
    Onigiri o tsukurimashita ka.
    How many rice balls did you make?

    👉 We can also say いくつ[ikutsu]!

  • B:

    作りました。
    tsukurimashita.
    I made .

    👉 We can also say ふたつ[futatsu]!

• • A:

    壁に古い写真が飾ってありますか。
    Kabe ni furui shashin ga kazatte arimasu ka.
    How many old photos are displayed on the wall?

  • B:

    飾ってあります。 kazatte arimasu.
    are displayed.

• • A:

    誕生日にプレゼントをもらいましたか。
    Tanjōbi ni purezento o moraimashita ka.
    How many presents did you receive for your birthday?

    👉 We can also say いくつ[ikutsu]!

  • B:

    もらいました。
    moraimashita.
    I received .

    👉 We can also say いつつ[itsutsu]!

• • A:

    木がありますか。
    Ki ga arimasu ka.
    How many trees are there?

  • B:

    あります。
    arimasu.
    There are .

    👉 We can also pronounce it as はっぽん[happon]!

The following passage is a short essay Katy is writing for her Japanese class. Apparently she needs your help with counters! Complete the passage by filling each blank with a number plus counter (pick one from the “Counter Bank” below). For practice, let’s spell them out either in hiragana or romaji.

• つ[tsu]	個[ko]	本[hon]	枚[mai]	人[nin]

• Katy's Essay

  • 私には兄と妹と弟がいます。
    Watashi ni wa ani to imōto to otōto ga imasu.
    I have an elder brother, a younger sister, and a younger brother.

  • 兄は音楽が好きで、CDをぐらい持っています。
    Ani wa ongaku ga suki de, shiidii o gurai motte imasu.
    My elder brother likes music and has about a hundred CDs.

    100 = ひゃく[hyaku]

  • 妹と弟はどちらもまだ小さいです。妹はで、弟はです。
    Imōto to otōto wa dochira mo mada chiisai desu. Imōto wa de, otōto wa desu.
    Both my younger sister and my younger brother are still little. My younger sister is eight years old, and my younger brother is four years old.

  • 妹はかわいい鉛筆をぐらい集めています。
    Imōto wa kawaii enpitsu o gurai motte imasu.
    My younger sister has collected about thirty cute pencils.

  • 弟は、小さい怪獣のおもちゃを持っていて、いつもそれで遊んでいます。
    Otōto wa kaijū no omocha o motte ite, itsumo sorede asonde imasu.
    My younger brother has twelve miniature toy monsters and plays with them all the time.

  • 私はきれいな絵葉書を集めています。まだらいですが、部屋の壁に飾って楽しんでいます。
    Watashi wa kireina ehagaki o atsumete imasu. Mada gurai desu ga, heya no kabe ni kazatte tanoshinde imasu.
    I collect beautiful picture postcards. I only have about forty so far, but I enjoy them by displaying them on the walls of my room.