Vocabulary

Japanese vocabulary acquisition is a years-long process requiring consistent daily effort. This guide covers the structure of Japanese vocabulary, how many words you need for each level, and the most effective strategies for building and retaining your word bank.

Three Layers of Japanese Vocabulary

Japanese vocabulary draws from three distinct sources:

Wago (和語) — Native Japanese Words

Words that predate the import of Chinese characters. Usually:

• Written in hiragana alone or with kanji (using kun'yomi)
• Concrete, everyday concepts (body parts, nature, basic actions)
• Often more poetic/emotional in tone

Examples: 山 (やま, mountain), 川 (かわ, river), 食べる (たべる, eat), きれい (pretty), こころ (heart)

Kango (漢語) — Sino-Japanese Words

Words adopted from Chinese, typically using on'yomi kanji readings:

• Compose ~60% of the Japanese dictionary
• Written in kanji (usually two or more kanji together)
• More formal, academic, technical register
• Many have direct cognates in modern Chinese (though different sounds)

Examples: 経済 (けいざい, economy), 社会 (しゃかい, society), 学校 (がっこう, school), 科学 (かがく, science)

Gairaigo (外来語) — Foreign Loanwords

Modern loanwords, mostly from English (post-Meiji era):

• Written in katakana
• Pronunciation adapted to Japanese phonology (no consonant clusters, vowels inserted)
• Heavily used in technology, food, fashion, pop culture

Examples: テレビ (terebi, TV), コーヒー (kōhī, coffee), パソコン (pasokon, PC), アニメ (anime)

Strategic insight: Kango vocabulary has the best ROI for learners who know Chinese — many words are recognizable. English speakers benefit most from gairaigo (familiar sounds). Start with wago for basic daily life and kango for JLPT exam vocabulary.

Vocabulary Targets by Level

JLPT Level	Cumulative Vocab	New Words at This Level
N5	~800	800
N4	~1,500	~700
N3	~3,750	~2,250
N2	~6,000	~2,250
N1	~10,000	~4,000
Functional literacy	~15,000–20,000	—
Native adult	~30,000–50,000	—

Note: These are estimates. The JLPT does not publish official vocabulary lists. Counts vary across sources by 10–20%.

The SRS Approach: Anki

Spaced repetition software (SRS) is the most efficient vocabulary retention tool available. Anki is the gold standard:

Setting Up Anki for Japanese

1. Download Anki: Free at apps.ankiweb.net (desktop and Android; iOS is $24.99 one-time)

2. Choose a deck:

   • Core 2K/6K/10K: High-frequency vocabulary with audio + example sentences — best for raw vocabulary coverage
   • JLPT N5/N4/N3/N2/N1 deck: Level-specific vocabulary — good for exam prep
   • Tango N5/N4 (Anki deck): Sentence-based cards from the Tango textbook series — excellent for context

3. Optimal settings for Japanese:

   • New cards per day: 15–20 (beginners), 20–30 (intermediate)
   • Maximum reviews per day: 200–300
   • Learning steps: 1m 10m (first day), then 1 day, then graduated
   • Enable audio autoplay

4. Card format (recommended):

   • Front: Japanese word (kanji + reading in small text) + audio
   • Back: English meaning + example sentence (Japanese) + example translation

Daily SRS Routine

• Morning: Do all due reviews before adding new cards — reviews are highest priority
• New cards: Add new cards only after completing reviews
• Time: 15–20 minutes/day is sufficient for 15–20 new cards
• Never skip reviews: Missing a day creates a debt that takes days to clear
• Suspend cards you hate: It's okay to suspend a card temporarily — don't let it block your deck

Sentence Mining

Beyond pre-made decks, "sentence mining" extracts vocabulary from content you actually consume:

How to Mine Sentences

1. Read or watch Japanese content (manga, anime, news)
2. Encounter an unknown word in context
3. Look it up with Jisho or Yomichan
4. If it's useful, add it to your Anki deck with the original sentence as context
5. The original sentence carries the meaning and usage pattern together

Tools for Sentence Mining

• Yomichan/Yomitan (browser extension): Hover over any kanji on a webpage — popup shows definition; one click adds to Anki
• Immersion Kit (immersionkit.com): Search for sentences containing a word from anime/drama
• JPDB.io: Pre-read vocabulary for specific anime/manga before consuming them
• Language Reactor (Netflix extension): Click words in Netflix subtitles; export to Anki

When to Start Mining

• Beginners: After reaching N5 level (~1,000 known words) — before that, mined sentences have too many unknown words
• Intermediate: N3+ — mining from your immersion content becomes the primary vocabulary growth method

Frequency Lists

Learning high-frequency words first maximizes comprehension per hour of study:

Frequency Range	Coverage
Top 500 words	~70% of most casual speech
Top 1,000 words	~80% of conversation
Top 3,000 words	~90% of general text
Top 6,000 words	~95% of most text
Top 10,000 words	~97% of most text

Best frequency resources:

• Core 2K Anki deck: Top 2,000 words from spoken Japanese
• Core 6K/10K Anki deck: Extended lists
• JPDB.io: Frequency lists specifically from anime, visual novels, manga, and books — better than general corpus if you want to watch/read specific media

Thematic Vocabulary

Learning words by topic helps activate vocabulary in context:

Topic	Key vocabulary	JLPT Relevance
Family	家族、父母、兄弟、姉妹	N5–N4
Food	食べ物、料理、レストラン	N5–N4
Numbers	数字、量、〜個〜本〜枚	N5
Time	時間、曜日、月、年	N5–N4
Body	体の部位、健康、病気	N4–N3
Travel	交通、宿泊、観光	N4–N3
Work	仕事、会社、職業	N3–N2
Nature	自然、天気、動植物	N3–N2

Vocabulary Learning Tips

1. Learn words in context, not in isolation: A word learned in a sentence is retained 2–3x better than a word learned alone. Always have an example sentence.

2. Prioritize common words: Use frequency lists or JLPT levels as a rough guide. Learning 勉強する (to study) before 研鑽する (to pursue mastery) is obviously better order.

3. Accept ambiguity at first: You don't need a perfect understanding of every nuance of a word when you first learn it. Deepen understanding through repeated encounters.

4. Active recall is essential: Passively reading word lists does not build strong memories. Anki's active recall (seeing the question → retrieving the answer) is far more effective.

5. Connect new words to known words: 電気 (electricity) → 電車 (electric train), 電話 (telephone), 電子 (electronic) — one key kanji radiates into many related words.

6. Read extensively: At N3+, extensive reading (extensive = for pleasure without stopping to look up everything) is one of the most efficient vocabulary-building activities. Encounter the same words dozens of times in natural contexts.

7. Use the language actively: When you start to think in Japanese, even briefly, vocabulary retention improves dramatically. Try narrating your daily routine in Japanese mentally.