Discover smart strategies, top resources, and study tips to prepare for the JLPT and boost your chances of passing any level from N5 to N1.

Japanese proverbs, or ことわざ (kotowaza), are a great way to spice up and improve your language skills with more figurative speech. Exploring outside the typical methods of memorizing kanji and vocabulary, kotowaza can teach you how to use more nuanced phrases.  Plus, they can help you dive deeper into Japanese culture. Kotowaza paint a picture […]

After mastering hiragana, one of the three Japanese writing systems, the natural next step is to learn katakana, the second Japanese syllabary. Commonly used to write loanwords, katakana represent the same set of sounds as hiragana, but they look completely different. Katakana characters are typically boxier and more geometric, with sharp corners, in contrast to […]

Saying ‘no’ in Japan is a tricky subject. The Japanese will rarely give a direct no to an answer, preferring instead to give an indirect answer that conveys the message of no.

How to count Japanese numerics on a base-ten system up to 100 million, write Japanese kanji for numbers and say Japanese counters.

This week Nezu San will teach us about Japanese Haniwa Pottery

Looking for a fun way to improve your Japanese enunciation? Japanese tongue twisters, or hayakuchi kotoba (早口言葉), are short, challenging phrases that help train your tongue, improve fluency, and boost confidence when speaking. Try one a day and make it part of your study routine — yes, even while performing your oral hygiene routine ! […]

Primary colors in Japanese seem easy and straightforward, but you’d be surprised by how much culture and history go behind them.