Japanese Counters for JLPT N5: 1–10 Chart and Irregular Readings

All N5 Counters at a Glance

This table shows which counter to use for each object type and which numbers have irregular readings.

人 (にん) — Counting People

Full 1–10 table

One and two people use ancient native Japanese readings. From three onward the pattern is regular (Sino-Japanese number + にん).

• 教室に学生が三人います。 — There are three students in the classroom.
• 家族は五人です。 — My family has five members.

本 (ほん) — Long Cylindrical Objects

Full 1–10 table

Use 本 for pens, pencils, bottles, umbrellas, rivers, and phone calls. Five numbers trigger sound changes — learn the bolded forms first.

• えんぴつが二本あります。 — There are two pencils.
• ジュースを一本買いました。 — I bought one bottle of juice.

つ — General Counter (Native Japanese)

Full 1–10 table

つ uses native Japanese (和語) words for every number — completely different from the Sino-Japanese readings used by other counters. Note: at 10, the つ suffix disappears and you say とお alone.

• みかんをふたつ食べました。 — I ate two mandarin oranges.
• いすがみっつあります。 — There are three chairs.

Irregular Readings for 個・冊・回

Gemination at 1, 6, 8, and 10

These three counters follow the same consonant-doubling pattern: numbers 1, 6, 8, and 10 trigger gemination. The bold cells are the forms to memorise.

枚 and 台 — Fully Regular Counters

No sound changes — just combine number + counter

• 紙を三枚ください。 — Please give me three sheets of paper.
• 車が二台あります。 — There are two cars.

Why Do Counter Readings Change?

The euphonic change pattern

Japanese avoids awkward consonant combinations through a process called euphonic change (音便, おんびん). The rule for counters:

• 1, 6, 8, 10 + h-initial counter — h changes to p and the preceding syllable geminates (doubles): いち+ほん → いっぽん, ろく+ほん → ろっぽん
• 3 + h-initial counter — the nasal ん voices h to b: さん+ほん → さんぼん
• 1, 6, 8, 10 + k-initial counter — same gemination, k stays k: いっかい, ろっかい, はっかい, じゅっかい
• 1, 8, 10 + s-initial counter — gemination before s: いっさつ, はっさつ, じゅっさつ
• 2, 4, 5, 7, 9 — no change with any counter

The shortcut: numbers 1, 6, 8, and 10 almost always trigger a sound change. Memorise these four numbers per counter and the rest are regular.

Example Sentences

One sentence per counter — read and listen

• 教室に学生が三人います。 — There are three students in the classroom. (人)
• えんぴつが二本あります。 — There are two pencils. (本)
• 切手を五枚買いました。 — I bought five stamps. (枚)
• りんごを四個食べました。 — I ate four apples. (個)
• 車が一台あります。 — There is one car. (台)
• 本を二冊借りました。 — I borrowed two books. (冊)
• 一日に三回食べます。 — I eat three times a day. (回)
• いすがみっつあります。 — There are three chairs. (つ)

Common Mistakes

Five errors to fix before exam day

• Using regular readings for 1 and 2 people: いちにん and ににん do not exist. One person is always ひとり, two people is always ふたり.
• Using つ to count people: つ is for objects. ひとつ means "one thing," not "one person." Use 人 for people.
• Forgetting gemination in listening: saying いちほん instead of いっぽん or ろくほん instead of ろっぽん are the most common N5 listening errors.
• Mixing up 枚 and 個: use 枚 for flat objects (paper, cloth, plates) and 個 for compact three-dimensional items (fruit, erasers, candy).
• Saying じゅうつ for 10: there is no じゅうつ. The native Japanese word for 10 is とお with no suffix. For more than 10 general objects, switch to 個.

FAQ

Why does 一本 become いっぽん instead of いちほん?

Japanese has a euphonic change rule (音便). Numbers ending in a stop sound (1, 6, 8, 10) cause the following h-counter to change: h becomes p and the preceding consonant doubles. So いち＋ほん → いっぽん. Three is special — the nasal ん voices h to b: さん＋ほん → さんぼん.

What are the irregular readings for 人?

One person is ひとり (hitori) and two people is ふたり (futari) — both are ancient native Japanese words. From three onward the reading is regular: 三人 さんにん、四人 よにん、五人 ごにん、六人 ろくにん、七人 ななにん、八人 はちにん、九人 きゅうにん、十人 じゅうにん.

When should I use つ instead of a specific counter?

Use つ as a fallback when you do not know the correct counter for an object. It works safely for most small everyday items up to 10. As soon as you learn the right counter — 本 for long objects, 枚 for flat ones — use that, since it sounds more natural to native speakers.

Which counters appear most often in JLPT N5?

The eight you need: 人 (people), 本 (long objects), 枚 (flat objects), 個 (small items), 台 (machines), 冊 (books), 回 (times), and つ (general). You may occasionally also see 杯 はい (cups/glasses) and 匹 ひき (small animals).

How do I choose the right counter for an unfamiliar object?

Ask yourself: Is it long and thin (pen, umbrella, road)? → 本. Flat and thin (paper, shirt, plate)? → 枚. Mechanical or motorised? → 台. Bound like a book? → 冊. Small and compact? → 個. If nothing fits, つ is a safe default for most everyday objects.

Does the つ counter work for counting people?

No. つ counts objects, not people. To count people use 人: ひとり (1), ふたり (2), 三人 さんにん (3), 四人 よにん (4), and so on. Using ひとつ for a person is a clear grammar mistake in Japanese.

Continue Your N5 Path

Sources and Editorial Notes

Counter readings vary by counter, so the chart prioritizes the eight high-frequency beginner counters and marks the sound changes learners need to recognize. Examples are original learning examples.

• Japan Foundation: Irodori Japanese for Life in Japan
• Official JLPT: Level summary
• Japanese Numbers 1–1000 chart