Japanese learning blog
Practical guides on speaking, grammar, pronunciation, listening, and study planning, written for learners who want to use Japanese in real life.
All articles ยท Page 190
Visiting a Japanese Temple or Shrine: Etiquette and Words
A shrine or temple is one of the few places in Japan where you are expected to follow a sequence of actions without being told. This guide gives you the sequence, the words on the signs, and the phrases you will actually say.
15 min readJapanese Table Manners and Mealtime Phrases
Most Japanese table manners are easy to copy once you see them. The harder part is the sentence that goes with each moment, and that is what this guide gives you, with the reply you will hear back.
15 min readJapanese Gestures and Body Language Explained
Half of a Japanese conversation happens below the neck. Learn what the hands are saying and the sentence that usually rides on top of each gesture, and everyday exchanges suddenly make sense.
15 min readJapanese Seasonal Greetings and Yearly Events
The Japanese year is a calendar of set phrases. Learn which line belongs to which month and you can open almost any conversation with the words a native speaker was already expecting.
15 min readVisiting a Japanese Home: Etiquette and Phrases
A home visit is the one situation where every step has a set phrase and the host is quietly hoping you know it. This guide walks through the visit in order, with the lines you say and the lines you will hear back.
16 min readHow to Give and Receive Compliments in Japanese
A compliment in Japanese is a small negotiation. The giver keeps it light and specific, the receiver plays it down, and both walk away pleased. Here is how each side sounds, and where the traps are.
15 min readJapanese Colours: Words, Grammar, and Everyday Uses
Japanese colours are easy to memorise and surprisingly easy to get wrong, because red and green do not follow the same grammar. This guide sorts the colours by how they behave and puts each one into a sentence you will actually say.
14 min readJapanese Animal Words and the Sounds They Make
Animal words are some of the first Japanese you learn and some of the last you use correctly, because each one arrives with a counter, a verb, and a sound of its own.
15 min readJapanese Body Parts Vocabulary for Daily Life
Body words turn up far beyond the clinic: you need them to describe a friend, book a haircut, tell a masseur where it hurts, and understand why a colleague says their hands are not free.
15 min readJapanese Weather Words for Small Talk and Forecasts
Weather is the first thing Japanese people say to each other and the last thing learners prepare for, even though the whole exchange runs on about forty words.
15 min readJapanese Food and Drink Vocabulary Beyond the Menu
Menu Japanese gets you fed. The words in this guide let you say what the food was like, ask what is in it, choose a drink the way you want it, and talk about what you cook at home.
14 min readJapanese Words for Emotions and Feelings
Feeling words are among the first Japanese adjectives you learn and the last you use correctly, because the grammar around them decides whose feeling you are describing.
13 min readPractical guides
Turn Japanese knowledge into speaking confidence
Practice with Unihongo's AI Sensei in an immersive 3D classroom, with roleplay missions, pronunciation coaching, useful feedback, and learning games that build your vocabulary while you play.