Lesson 10: いくらですか

N5 · Lesson 10 · 20 min — 〜はいくらですか: asking and saying prices

Good news: Japanese numbers are very regular. Learn 0–10 plus the words for 100, 1,000 and 10,000, and you can build any price. Just watch two things: Japanese counts big numbers in units of 10,000 (まん), and a few numbers change their sound.

After this lesson, you can:

• Count from 0 to 10 in Japanese, and say 100, 1,000 and 10,000
• Say tricky numbers like 300, 600 and 800 correctly
• Ask prices with 「〜は いくらですか」 at a convenience store or station
• Read and say 「〜円えんです」

Rin Goes Shopping

Rin goes shopping at the konbini by himself for the first time. The 「¥」 on the price tag is read 「えん」.

Ask a price with 「〜はいくらですか」; answer "number + 円えんです". Neko-sensei is 0 yen... no wonder he always eats other people's?

Numbers 0–10

• ゼロ (zero): 0
• いち (ichi): 1 (one)
• に (ni): 2 (two)
• さん (san): 3 (three)
• よん (yon): 4 (four)
• ご (go): 5 (five)
• ろく (roku): 6 (six)
• なな (nana): 7 (seven)
• はち (hachi): 8 (eight)
• きゅう (kyū): 9 (nine)
• じゅう (jū): 10 (ten)

Big numbers + shopping words

• ひゃく (hyaku): 100 (one hundred)
• せん (sen): 1,000 (one thousand)
• いちまん (ichiman): 10,000 (ten thousand)
• 円えん (en): yen
• いくら (ikura): how much
• おにぎり (onigiri): rice ball
• おちゃ (ocha): tea
• コーヒー (kōhī): coffee
• きっぷ (kippu): ticket

Grammar 1 / 2: Grammar 1

Build numbers piece by piece: 2・10・3 = に・じゅう・さん = 23.

• First, learn 0–10 well: For 4, 7 and 9, 「よん・なな・きゅう」 are the safest. They work for counting and for prices (except 4円えん, which is read よえん; more on that soon).
• Build numbers piece by piece: 23 = 2・10・3 = にじゅうさん; 45 = 4・10・5 = よんじゅうご. Just say each piece in order.
• No 「いち」 for 100 or 1,000, but 10,000 needs it: 100 = ひゃく, 1,000 = せん. But 10,000 needs いち: いちまん. 12,000 = one 10,000 + two 1,000s = いちまんにせん.
• Some numbers change their sound: 300, 600 and 800 change their sound. Listen to them in the next step.

• じゅうご — 15
• ひゃくろくじゅう — 160
• にひゃくごじゅう — 250
• いちまんにせん — 12,000

Sound changes: 300・600・800

Tap the left and right sides to compare. Hear what changes.

Grammar 2 / 2: Grammar 2

Ask: Nは いくらですか。 Answer: 〜円えんです。

• Ask: Nは いくらですか: いくら = how much. Put the thing you're asking about before 「は」: おにぎりは いくらですか。
• Point with これ・この: Don't know the name? No problem: これは いくらですか。 To be more specific, use 「この + noun」: この おちゃは いくらですか。
• Answer: number + 円えんです: 円えん is read 「えん」. 150 yen = ひゃくごじゅう円えんです。
• Same price? Use も: おちゃは ひゃくごじゅう円えんです。コーヒーも ひゃくごじゅう円えんです。(The coffee is also 150 yen.)

• これは いくらですか。 — How much is this?
• おにぎりは ひゃくろくじゅう円えんです。 — The rice ball is 160 yen.
• その きっぷは いくらですか。 — How much is that ticket?
• あれは いちまん円えんですよ。 — That one over there is 10,000 yen.
• コーヒーも ひゃくごじゅう円えんですか。 — Is the coffee also 150 yen?
• はい、そうです。 — Yes, that's right.