So, you’ve already mastered the beginner level in Japanese? Congratulations! That means you know how to write Hiragana, Katakana, and the basic Kanji, as well as the basic grammar rules. Now you’re ready to level up to intermediate Japanese!
At some point during your studies, you probably heard about the JLPT (Japanese-Language Proficiency Test). This is a standardized test that evaluates the Japanese-language proficiency of non-native speakers, including their language knowledge (vocabulary/grammar), reading ability, and listening ability. Level N3 is equivalent to the intermediate level, and setting a goal for yourself to pass this level would be a good source of motivation to help you keep up your studies.
You faced the first challenge when you started learning Japanese, a language with a totally new set of characters and grammar rules from English. However, the beginner level is rewarding in that you can easily see your progress the more you study. On the other hand, the intermediate level is when things start getting hard—you need continuous effort and patience to make meaningful advances at this stage. Although the progress may seem very slow, you’ll steadily move forward as long as you don’t give up!
In this article, we’ll introduce a list of frequently used intermediate Japanese words, including larger numbers, nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and even conjunctions and Japanese particles. Let’s start the journey toward conquering the next level here at JapanesePod101.com!
The Japanese intermediate level gets harder, but you can still have fun learning with JapanesePod101.com.
Table of Contents- Larger Numbers
- Nouns – 名詞 (Meishi)
- Verbs – 動詞 (Dōshi)
- Adjectives – 形容詞 (Keiyōshi)
- Adverbs – 副詞 (Fukushi)
- Conjunctions – 接続詞 (Setsuzokushi)
- Auxiliary Words and Particles – 助詞 (Joshi)
- Conclusion
1. Larger Numbers
Once you know the basic Japanese numbers, counting to larger numbers is fairly simple. We can easily express these numbers with Kanji using relatively few digits.
Keep in mind, however, that we group larger numbers by every 10,000 (rather than every 1,000 like in Western counting). That said, when we do write the Arabic numbers in Japan, it’s common to use commas for every thousand just like it’s done in the West.
Arabic Number | Kanji | Hiragana | Reading |
100 | 百 | ひゃく | hyaku |
1,000 | 千 | せん | sen |
10,000 | 万 | まん | man |
100,000 | 十万 | じゅうまん | jū-man |
1,000,000 | 百万 | ひゃくまん | hyaku-man |
10,000,000 | 千万 | せんまん | sen-man |
100,000,000 | 億 | おく | oku |
1,000,000,000 | 十億 | じゅうおく | jū-oku |
10,000,000,000 | 百億 | ひゃくおく | hyaku-oku |
100,000,000,000 | 千億 | せんおく | sen-oku |
1,000,000,000,000 | 兆 | ちょう | chō |
Number-related Vocabulary
English | Kanji | Hiragana | Reading |
number | 数字 | すうじ | sūji |
calculation | 計算 | けいさん | keisan |
arithmetic | 算数 | さんすう | sansū |
mathematics | 数学 | すうがく | sūgaku |
addition | 足し算 | たしざん | tashizan |
subtraction | 引き算 | ひきざん | hikizan |
multiplication | 掛け算 | かけざん | kakezan |
division | 割り算 | わりざん | warizan |
Examples:
- 私のいとこは宝くじで2億円を当てました。
Watashi no itoko wa takarakuji de ni-oku-en o atemashita.
“My cousin won 200 million Yen in the lottery.”
- 2020年の日本の国家予算は約103兆円です。
Ni-sen ni-jū-nen no Nihon no kokka yosan wa yaku hyaku san-chō-en desu.
“Japan’s national budget in 2020 was around 103 trillion Yen.”
- 私は毎日その日の利益を計算します。
Watashi wa mainichi sono hi no rieki o keisan shimasu.
“I calculate the profit for the day every day.”
We can easily express larger numbers with Kanji.
2. Nouns – 名詞 (Meishi)
Our next set of intermediate Japanese vocabulary words will cover the most practical nouns in a range of categories. At this stage in your learning journey, picking up as many new nouns as possible will help you better express yourself and allow you to hold conversations on a greater number of topics.
Time
English | Kanji | Hiragana | Reading |
sunrise | 日の出 | ひので | hinode |
sunset | 日没 | にちぼつ | nichibotsu |
instant (a very short moment) | 一瞬 | いっしゅん | isshun |
a whole life / lifetime / for life | 一生 | いっしょう | isshō |
a time / while / one time | 一時 | いちじ | ichiji |
a short period or term | 短期 | たんき | tanki |
a medium-length period or term | 中期 | ちゅうき | chūki |
a long period or term | 長期 | ちょうき | chōki |
a school term / semester | 学期 | がっき | gakki |
this time | 今回 | こんかい | konkai |
hereafter / from now on / onward | 今後 | こんご | kongo |
Examples:
- 夏は日の出が早く、日没が遅い。
Natsu wa hinode ga hayaku, nichibotsu ga osoi.
“In summer, the sunrise (time) is early and the sunset (time) is late.”
- 彼は短期目標を設定しました。
Kare wa tanki mokuhyō o settei shimashita.
“He has set a short-term goal.”
- 私は今後一切タバコを吸いません。
Watashi wa kongo issai tabako o suimasen.
“I will never smoke cigarettes from now on.”
2. People
English | Kanji | Hiragana | Reading |
individual | 個人 | こじん | kojin |
group | 集団 | しゅうだん | shūdan |
citizen | 市民 | しみん | shimin |
people (of a country) or nation | 国民 | こくみん | kokumin |
man / boy / male | 男子 | だんし | danshi |
woman / girl / female | 女子 | じょし | joshi |
infant | 幼児 | ようじ | yōji |
young man / young people / youth | 青年 | せいねん | seinen |
elderly | 年配 | ねんぱい | nenpai |
old person / the aged | 老人 | ろうじん | rōjin |
stranger / others | 他人 | たにん | tanin |
colleague / coworker | 同僚 | どうりょう | dōryō |
boss / superior | 上司 | じょうし | jōshi |
subordinate | 部下 | ぶか | buka |
employee / staff | 社員 | しゃいん | shain |
president / head (of a company) | 社長 | しゃちょう | shachō |
Examples:
- 国民の三大義務は、教育、労働、納税です。
Kokumin no sandai gimu wa, kyōiku, rōdō, nōzei desu.
“The three major duties of the people in Japan are education, labor, and paying taxes.”
- あの青年は老人介護施設で働いています。
Ano seinen wa rōjin kaigo shisetsu de hataraite imasu.
“That young man works at a nursing home for the elderly.”
- 私の目標は起業して社長になることです。
Watashi no mokuhyō wa kigyō shite shachō ni naru koto desu.
“My goal is to start a business and become president.”
To learn more work-related vocabulary words with audio, we recommend you check out our wordlists Jobs / Work and Workplace.
昼休みに同僚と雑談する (hiruyasumi ni dōryō to zatsudan suru)
“chat with colleagues during lunch break”
3. Other Nouns
English | Kanji | Hiragana | Reading |
start / beginning | 開始 | かいし | kaishi |
end / close / termination | 終了 | しゅうりょう | shūryō |
stop / suspension | 停止 | ていし | teishi |
base / fundament / standard | 基本 | きほん | kihon |
basis / foundation | 基礎 | きそ | kiso |
(practical) application | 応用 | おうよう | ōyō |
input / entry / filling in / filling out | 記入 | きにゅう | kinyū |
article | 記事 | きじ | kiji |
right | 権利 | けんり | kenri |
rules / regulations | 規則 | きそく | kisoku |
law | 法律 | ほうりつ | hōritsu |
accounting | 会計 | かいけい | kaikei |
business / commerce | 商売 | しょうばい | shōbai |
profit | 利益 | りえき | rieki |
product | 製品 | せいひん | seihin |
lack / shortage / deficiency | 不足 | ふそく | fusoku |
income | 収入 | しゅうにゅう | shūnyū |
documents | 書類 | しょるい | shorui |
cooperation / collaboration | 協力 | きょうりょく | kyōryoku |
satisfaction / contentment | 満足 | まんぞく | manzoku |
dissatisfaction | 不満 | ふまん | fuman |
Examples:
- 開始と終了の時間に、ベルが鳴ります。
Kaishi to shūryō no jikan ni, beru ga narimasu.
“The bell rings at the start and end times.”
- 法律に基づき、18歳以上の国民は投票する権利があります。
Hōritsu ni motozuki, jū hassai ijō no kokumin wa tōhyō suru kenri ga arimasu.
“By law, citizens over 18 years old have the right to vote.”
- パンデミックの影響で、衛生製品が不足しています。
Pandemikku no eikyō de, eisei seihin ga fusoku shite imasu.
“Due to the influence of the pandemic, there is a shortage of hygiene products.”
書類に記入する (shorui ni kinyū suru)
“fill out the document”
To learn more Japanese nouns, please check out Guide to the Top 100+ Japanese Nouns on our website.
3. Verbs – 動詞 (Dōshi)
Verbs, like nouns, make up a huge chunk of any language’s vocabulary. At the beginner level, you picked up a number of useful action words and auxiliaries to get your point across—but as you approach the intermediate level, you may find yourself needing more advanced verbs to clearly express your thoughts. Below is a list to get you started.
General Verbs
English | Kanji | Hiragana | Reading |
to encounter / to meet / to come across | 出会う | であう | deau |
to remove / to undo | 外す | はずす | hazusu |
to like / to be pleased with | 気に入る | きにいる | ki ni iru |
to fall down / to fall over | 転ぶ | ころぶ | korobu |
to receive | 受け取る | うけとる | uketoru |
to take (something) out | 取り出す | とりだす | toridasu |
to divide / to split / to separate | 分ける | わける | wakeru |
to give up | 諦める | あきらめる | akirameru |
to lose interest in / to get tired of | 飽きる | あきる | akiru |
to be enough / to be sufficient | 足りる | たりる | tariru |
to remain / to be in excess | 余る | あまる | amaru |
to appear / to show up / to turn up | 現れる | あらわれる | arawareru |
to express / to show | 表す | あらわす | arawasu |
to treat / to handle / to deal with | 扱う | あつかう | atsukau |
to put together / to combine / to add to / to match | 合わせる | あわせる | awaseru |
to deposit / to consign / to entrust | 預ける | あずける | azukeru |
to touch | 触れる | ふれる | fureru |
to shake / to tremble / to vibrate / to shudder / to shiver | 震える | ふるえる | furueru |
to prevent / to guard against | 防ぐ | ふせぐ | fusegu |
to wear (trousers, skirt, shoes) / to put on | 履く | はく | haku |
to discuss | 話し合う | はなしあう | hanashiau |
to separate / to keep apart / to isolate | 離す | はなす | hanasu |
to release / to free / to let go | 放す | はなす | hanasu |
to decrease | 減る | へる | heru |
to pull | 引く | ひく | hiku |
to celebrate | 祝う | いわう | iwau |
to dislike | 嫌がる | いやがる | iyagaru |
to be concerned with / to engage in / to be related to | 関わる | かかわる | kakawaru |
to hide | 隠す | かくす | kakusu |
to earn / to make money | 稼ぐ | かせぐ | kasegu |
to pile up / to put on top of one another | 重ねる | かさねる | kasaneru |
to shine / to sparkle | 輝く | かがやく | kagayaku |
to repeat | 繰り返す | くりかえす | kurikaesu |
to stretch / to get longer / to grow | 伸びる | のびる | nobiru |
to remove / to get rid of / to exclude | 除く | のぞく | nozoku |
Examples:
- 諦めたらそこで試合は終了です。
Akirametara soko de shiai wa shūryō desu.
“If you give up, the game ends there.”
- あなたに預けた書類を受け取りに来ました。
Anata ni azuketa shorui o uketori ni kimashita.
“I came to pick up the documents I entrusted to you.”
- 彼は彼女に関わることを嫌がった。
Kare wa kanojo ni kakawaru koto o iyagatta.
“He disliked getting involved with her.”
[ Noun + する (suru) ] Verbs
This type of Japanese verb is formed by using this pattern: noun + する (suru). You may remember that する (suru) means “do,” and in this case, we use it to create verbs. For example:
- 期待する (kitai suru) or “to expect” = 期待 (kitai) “expectation” + する (suru) “do”
English | Kanji | Hiragana | Reading |
to go out | 外出する | がいしゅつする | gaishutsu suru |
to make (an) effort | 努力する | どりょくする | doryoku suru |
to memorize / to store data | 記憶する | きおくする | kioku suru |
to expect / to hope to | 期待する | きたいする | kitai suru |
to grow (up) | 成長する | せいちょうする | seichō suru |
to lack | 不足する | ふそくする | fusoku suru |
to match / to coincide | 一致する | いっちする | itchi suru |
to agree with / to support (a measure) | 賛成する | さんせいする | sansei suru |
to oppose / to object | 反対する | はんたいする | hantai suru |
to concentrate | 集中する | しゅうちゅうする | shūchū suru |
to import | 輸入する | ゆにゅうする | yunyū suru |
to export | 輸出する | ゆしゅつする | yushutsu suru |
to sell | 販売する | はんばいする | hanbai suru |
to zoom / to enlarge / to expand | 拡大する | かくだいする | kakudai suru |
to shrink / to reduce / to diminish | 縮小する | しゅくしょうする | syukushō suru |
Examples:
- 彼は彼女に会えることを期待して外出しました。
Kare wa kanojo ni aeru koto o kitai shite gaishutsu shimashita.
“He went out hoping to see her.”
- この会社は日本茶を海外へ輸出して、世界中で販売しています。
Kono kaisha wa nihoncha o kaigai e yushutsu shite, sekaijū de hanbai shite imasu.
“This company exports Japanese tea overseas and sells it all over the world.”
- 勉強する時はテレビを消して集中しなさい。
Benkyō suru toki wa terebi o keshite shūchū shinasai.
“When you study, turn off the TV and concentrate.”
To learn more about Japanese verbs, please check out our articles The 100+ Most Common Japanese Verbs and Ultimate Japanese Verb Conjugation Guide.
努力して試験に合格 (doryoku shite shiken ni gōkaku)
“passing the exam by making an effort”
4. Adjectives – 形容詞 (Keiyōshi)
As a beginner, you probably spent most of your time memorizing nouns, verbs, and practical sentence patterns. But once you have the basics down, picking up a few common adjectives can help you enrich your conversations and add flavor to your writing. Below, we’ve listed the most useful adjectives for intermediate Japanese learners.
i-Adjectives
English | Kanji | Hiragana | Reading |
intense / hard / violent / fierce / furious | 激しい | はげしい | hageshii |
nostalgic / dear | 懐かしい | なつかしい | natsukashii |
shameful / pitiful / miserable | 情けない | なさけない | nasakenai |
frightening / terrifying / fearful | 恐ろしい | おそろしい | osoroshii |
persistent / insistent | ー | しつこい | shitsukoi |
powerful | 力強い | ちからづよい | chikarazuyoi |
smart / wise / clever | 賢い | かしこい | kashikoi |
childlike / childish / infant | 幼い | おさない | osanai |
hard / tough / painful / bitter | 辛い | つらい | tsurai |
jealous / envious | 羨ましい | うらやましい | urayamashii |
loose / lax | 緩い | ゆるい | yurui |
equal / equivalent | 等しい | ひとしい | hitoshii |
itchy | 痒い | かゆい | kayui |
noisy | 騒がしい | さわがしい | sawagashii |
funny | 可笑しい | おかしい | okashii |
empty / void / fruitless | 空しい | むなしい | munashii |
refreshing / refreshed | 清々しい | すがすがしい | sugasugashii |
menial / vulgar / greedy | 卑しい | いやしい | iyashii |
lovely / adorable | 可愛らしい | かわいらしい | kawairashii |
missed / longed for | 恋しい | こいしい | koishii |
smelly / stinky | 臭い | くさい | kusai |
tight / hard / tough | ー | きつい | kitsui |
detailed | 詳しい | くわしい | kuwashii |
regretful / mortifying | 悔しい | くやしい | kuyashii |
dazzling / bright | 眩しい | まぶしい | mabushii |
poor | 貧しい | まずしい | mazushii |
gentle / mild / quiet | 大人しい | おとなしい | otonashii |
fortunately / luckily | 幸い | さいわい | saiwai |
sharp | 鋭い | するどい | surudoi |
dull / slow | 鈍い | にぶい | nibui |
rough / harsh / wild | 荒い | あらい | arai |
Examples:
- 台風の影響で激しい雨が降っています。
Taifū no eikyō de hageshii ame ga futte imasu.
“It is raining hard due to the typhoon.”
- 公園で可愛らしい女の子が一人で遊んでいました。
Kōen de kawairashii onnanoko ga hitori de asonde imashita.
“The adorable girl was playing alone in the park.”
- 彼は大人しいが、鋭い洞察力を持っています。
Kare wa otonashii ga, surudoi dōsatsuryoku o motte imasu.
“He is quiet but has keen insight.”
太陽が眩しい。 (Taiyō ga mabushii.)
“The sun is bright.”
na-Adjectives
English | Kanji | Hiragana | Reading |
serious / earnest | 真面目 | まじめ | majime |
eager / zealous / ardent | 熱心 | ねっしん | nesshin |
advantageous | 有利 | ゆうり | yūri |
flat / even | 平ら | たいら | taira |
troublesome / cumbersome | 厄介 | やっかい | yakkai |
rich / abundant / fertile | 豊か | ゆたか | yutaka |
luxurious | 贅沢 | ぜいたく | zeitaku |
slight / subtle | 僅か | わずか | wazuka |
obstructive | 邪魔 | じゃま | jama |
obvious | 明らか | あきらか | akiraka |
troublesome / annoying / unwelcome | 迷惑 | めいわく | meiwaku |
troublesome / onerous / perplexing | 面倒 | めんどう | mendō |
Examples:
- この箱は平らな所に置いてください。
Kono hako wa taira na tokoro ni oite kudasai.
“Please place this box on a flat surface.”
- 私は僅かな可能性があれば、希望を捨てない。
Watashi wa wazuka na kanōsei ga areba, kibō o sutenai.
“I will not lose hope if there is a slight possibility.”
- 彼は明らかな間違いを犯しました。
Kare wa akiraka na machigai o okashimashita.
“He made an obvious mistake.”
To learn more about Japanese adjectives, please check out our articles Learn the Top 100 Essential Japanese Adjectives and -I vs. -NA Adjectives in Japanese.
5. Adverbs – 副詞 (Fukushi)
While adjectives describe nouns, adverbs provide additional information about verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. At this stage in your learning journey, having a few Japanese adverbs up your sleeve will allow you to give more detailed descriptions of events and help your writing flow more smoothly.
English | Kanji | Hiragana | Reading |
at once / immediately / promptly / right away | 早速 | さっそく | sassoku |
as … as possible | ー | なるべく | narubeku |
carelessly / thoughtlessly | ー | うっかり | ukkari |
probably / presumably | 恐らく | おそらく | osoraku |
quite / pretty | ー | かなり | kanari |
approximately / about / roughly | ー | およそ | oyoso |
just like / as if | ー | まるで | marude |
abruptly / suddenly | 急に | きゅうに | kyū ni |
rather | ー | むしろ | mushiro |
kind of / sort of / fairly / reasonably | ー | なかなか | nakanaka |
what is more / furthermore / moreover | 更に | さらに | sara ni |
already | 既に | すでに | sude ni |
for some time / for a while | 暫く | しばらく | shibaraku |
surely / definitely / indeed | 確かに | たしかに | tashika ni |
rather / quite a | 随分 | ずいぶん | zuibun |
at one time / at once / all at once | 一度に | いちどに | ichi-do ni |
all / whole | 全て | すべて | subete |
desperately / frantically | 必死に | ひっしに | hisshi ni |
deliberately / on purpose | ー | わざと | wazato |
increasingly / more and more | 益々 | ますます | masumasu |
one after another | 次々と | つぎつぎと | tsugitsugi to |
anytime / at all times | ー | いつでも | itsu demo |
before one is aware / before one knows | いつの間にか | いつのまにか | itsunomanika |
indeed / really | 実に | じつに | jitsu ni |
as it is | ー | そのまま | sonomama |
each / respectively | ー | それぞれ | sorezore |
sometimes | 時々 | ときどき | tokidoki |
always / at all times / constantly | 常に | つねに | tsune ni |
suddenly | 突然 | とつぜん | totsuzen |
in/at the beginning | 始めに | はじめに | hajime ni |
early / earlier / ahead of time | 早めに | はやめに | hayame ni |
before long / shortly | 間もなく | まもなく | mamonaku |
at least | 少なくとも | すくなくとも | sukunakutomo |
by chance / accidentally / unintentionally | ー | たまたま | tamatama |
in particular / particularly | 別に | べつに | betsu ni |
anyways / in any case | ー | とにかく | tonikaku |
by all means | ー | どうしても | dōshitemo |
again / once again | 再び | ふたたび | futatabi |
together | 共に | ともに | tomo ni |
a short while ago / a moment ago | 先程 | さきほど | sakihodo |
Examples:
- なるべく早く返信してください。
Narubeku hayaku henshin shite kudasai.
“Please reply as soon as possible.”q145
- 間もなく電車が到着します。
Mamonaku densha ga tōchaku shimasu.
“The train will arrive shortly.”
- 私は別にこれを欲しくない。
Watashi wa betsu ni kore o hoshikunai.
“I don’t want this in particular.”
次々と良い案が浮かぶ (tsugitsugi to ii an ga ukabu)
“come up with good ideas one after another”
6. Conjunctions – 接続詞 (Setsuzokushi)
English | Kanji | Hiragana | Reading |
finally / at last | 遂に | ついに | tsuini |
to sum up / in short / in a word | ー | つまり | tsumari |
therefore / accordingly / consequently | 従って | したがって | shitagatte |
so / therefore / hence | ー | ゆえに | yueni |
therefore / wherefore | ー | それゆえに | soreyueni |
and then | ー | すると | suruto |
however | ー | しかしながら | shikashinagara |
and yet / but even so | ー | それなのに | sorenanoni |
nevertheless / in spite of | それにも関わらず | それにもかかわらず | sorenimo kakawarazu |
having said that | とは言うものの | とはいうものの | towa iumonono |
and / as well as | 及び | および | oyobi |
besides / moreover / also | ー | かつ | katsu |
and also / both…and | 並びに | ならびに | narabini |
first / first of all | 最初に | さいしょに | saisho ni |
next / secondly | 次に | つぎに | tsugi ni |
at last / finally | 最後に | さいごに | saigo ni |
moreover / besides / on top of | ー | しかも | shikamo |
in addition | 加えて | くわえて | kuwaete |
moreover / in addition | その上で | そのうえで | sonouede |
on the one hand | 一方 | いっぽう | ippō |
conversely / contrarily | 逆に | ぎゃくに | gyaku ni |
while / on the other hand | 反面 | はんめん | hanmen |
the reason why is / because | なぜかと言うと | なぜかというと | naze ka to iu to |
still / yet / even | ー | なお | nao |
on the condition that… | ー | ただし | tadashi |
by the way | ー | ちなみに | chinamini |
in truth / in fact | 実は | じつは | jitsu wa |
namely / that is to say | ー | すなわち | sunawachi |
in short / in a word /to sum up | 要するに | ようするに | yōsuruni |
especially / in particular | 特に | とくに | tokuni |
above all / in particular | ー | とりわけ | toriwake |
anyhow / in any case / either way / anyway | ー | いずれにしても | izurenishitemo |
anyways / above all things | ー | ともあれ | tomoare |
then / if that is the case | ー | それでは | soredewa |
Examples:
- 従って、規則によりこれは無効となります。
Shitagatte, kisoku ni yori kore wa mukō to narimasu.
“Therefore, this is invalid according to regulation.”
- レストランは12時に閉まります。なお、ラストオーダーは11時です。
Resutoran wa jū ni-ji ni shimarimasu. Nao, rasuto ōdā wa jū ichi-ji desu.
“The restaurant closes at twelve. Yet, the last order is at eleven.”
- いずれにしても、納期は守ってください。
Izurenishitemo, nōki wa mamotte kudasai.
“In any case, please keep the delivery date.”
いずれにしても、来月は赤字になりそうです。
Izurenishitemo, raigetsu wa akaji ni narisō desu.
“In any case, it looks like it will be in the red next month.”
7. Auxiliary Words and Particles – 助詞 (Joshi)
Japanese particles, or 助詞 (joshi), are suffixes or short words that follow a modified noun, verb, adjective, or sentence. Particles play a very important role in Japanese grammar because even a slight difference in this regard could change the meaning/nuance of a sentence. Memorizing and becoming familiar with how to use these particles is a great way to start improving your Japanese as an intermediate learner.
English | Hiragana | Reading |
the more…the more | ば…ほど | ba…hodo |
would have / should have | ば…のに | ba…noni |
degree / extent | ほど | hodo |
is not as…as | ほど…ない | hodo…nai |
no matter how | いくら…ても | ikura…te mo |
through / from [A] to [B] | [A]から[B]にかけて | [A] kara [B] ni kakete |
only / just / since / after | …きり | …kiri |
for sure (emphasizes the preceding word) | …こそ | …koso |
if / suppose | もしも…たら | moshimo…tara |
although / despite | …ながらも | …nagaramo |
even if / even though / regardless of | …ても | …te mo |
to / for / as far as…is concerned / regarding | …にとって | … ni totte |
even / so much as / not even | さえ | sae |
if only / as long as | さえ…ば | sae…ba |
Examples:
- 勉強すればするほど賢くなります。
Benkyō sureba suru hodo kashikoku narimasu.
“The more you study, the smarter you become.”
- もしも大金があったら、豪華客船で世界一周したい。
Moshimo taikin ga attara, gōka kyakusen de sekai isshū shitai.
“If I had a lot of money, I would want to go around the world on a luxury cruise ship.”
- あなたさえ良ければ、一緒に行きませんか。
Anata sae yokereba, issho ni ikimasen ka.
“If only you’re okay, would you like to go with us?”
いくら寝ても眠い。 (Ikura nete mo nemui.)
“(I’m) sleepy no matter how much I sleep.”
Conclusion
In this article, we introduced the most frequently used intermediate Japanese words, including large numbers, nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, conjunctions, and particles—we even threw in some example sentences for you. Some Kanji are a bit harder than those you learned at the beginner level, but you’ll now be able to deal with a wider range of topics and converse in more detail.
If you would like to learn more about the Japanese language and culture, you’ll find a lot more helpful content on JapanesePod101.com. We provide a variety of free lessons designed to help you improve your Japanese language skills.
If you’re at the intermediate level in your Japanese studies, you’ll find the following articles very useful:
- Learn Japanese with Netflix
- Essential Business Japanese
- Japanese Phone Phrases
And there’s so much more! Learn Japanese faster and enjoy studying with JapanesePod101.com!
Before you go, let us know in the comments if you would like to learn Japanese words related to any specific topic. We’d be glad to help, and look forward to hearing from you!