一（いち）
JLPT N5 · noun
Pitch accent: odaka (tail-high) — high to the end, drops on a following particle (accent on mora 2)
Meaning: 1 (one)
Etymology
Loanword from Chinese “yī”.
Example sentences
- 一に一を足すと二になる。 — One plus one equals two.
- 彼はクラスで一番になりたい。 — He wants to be number one in his class.
Idioms & proverbs containing “一”
- 一喜一憂 (いっきいちゆう) — alternating between happiness and anxiety; swinging between joy and sorrow; being glad and sad by turns; oscillating between optimism and pessimism
- 一生懸命 (いっしょうけんめい) — very hard; with utmost effort; as hard as one can; with all one's might; for dear life; eagerly; desperately
- 一石二鳥 (いっせきにちょう) — killing two birds with one stone
- 一方通行 (いっぽうつうこう) — one-way traffic
- 二者択一 (にしゃたくいつ) — choosing between two things; two choices
- 満場一致 (まんじょういっち) — unanimity; unanimous consent; unanimous agreement
Related words
See it used in real works
- Example sentences from Japanese novels & web fiction (Massif)
- Hear “一” pronounced in real videos (YouGlish)