What is the hardest part of Japanese to learn?

The 5 Hardest Things About Japanese
  • The Writing System. The Japanese writing system is incredibly complex. ...
  • Context. Japanese is a very high context language, and coming from English, a very low context language, this can be quite tricky. ...
  • Counting Words. ...
  • Speed. ...
  • Fewer Possible Sound Combinations.

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What's the hardest part about Japanese?

In essence, there are three main aspects of Japanese that make learners nervous and give the language its difficult reputation:
  • Kanji.
  • The Politeness System (Keigo)
  • Word Order.

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What is Japanese so hard to learn?

In short, Japanese is one of the more difficult languages for a native English speaker to learn. It takes much dedication and time. Learning the kana and how to pronounce the syllables is relatively easy, the grammar is about in the middle between easy and difficult, and the kanji is very hard.

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What is the easiest part about learning Japanese?

Why speaking Japanese is easier than you might think
  • There's No Tones, Easy Phonetics. ...
  • Lots of Loan Words from English. ...
  • Basic Grammar Isn't Too Bad. ...
  • Limited Vocabulary Used in Conversational Japanese. ...
  • Practicing is Relatively Easy. ...
  • Hiragana and Katakana. ...
  • Kanji. ...
  • A Real Life Example of Business Japanese.

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How long does it take to be fluent in Japanese?

Approximately it will take 88 weeks, or 2200 hours of studying, to become fluent. But this article shows tips and tools to expedite and make the process easier. This article is a part of our extensive series of articles on Self-studying Japanese.

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The Hardest Part of Japanese

41 related questions found

Can I be fluent in Japanese in 2 years?

If you've read this far, it will be clear to you that there simply isn't a single definitive answer to this question. Learning Japanese isn't easy and it will take time. It's probably fair to say that you can expect a commitment of at least three years in order to achieve something resembling fluency.

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Can I be fluent in Japanese in 1 year?

In fact, Japanese is one of the most difficult languages to learn for a native English speaker. If you want to speak enough Japanese to make friends in Japan and carry on simple conversations, you can master casual Japanese in under a year, especially if you are skipping over hiragana and katakana.

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Which is harder Japanese or Korean?

Unlike other East-Asian languages, Korean isn't a tonal language. This means, that the meaning of the word doesn't change, regardless of what your accent is like. This makes learning Korean much easier than Japanese.

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What level of Japanese should a beginner be?

The easiest level is N5 and the most difficult level is N1. N4 and N5 measure the level of understanding of basic Japanese mainly learned in class. N1and N2 measure the level of understanding of Japanese used in a broad range of scenes in actual everyday life. N3 is a bridging level between N1/N2 and N4/N5.

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Is it worth learning Japanese for fun?

Beginner level students find learning the basics of Japanese extremely satisfying – and surprisingly simple! It is absolutely worth learning some basic, everyday words and phrases, even if you have no intention whatsoever of ever attempting to become fluent in Japanese.

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Is Japanese harder or Chinese harder?

Although there are intonation differences you have to be aware of, you don't have to tip-toe around sounds to convey the right meaning. This is why Japanese is easier to learn than Chinese. English native speakers can reach fluency faster.

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Why is Japanese yen so weak?

Japan is a country poor in resources has no choice but to import energy and agricultural products. Since the U.S. dollars are needed for imports, it is necessary to sell the yen to buy the dollar. Therefore, there is a high possibility that the yen will remain weak if resource prices continue to rise.

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Why is Japanese so hard for English speakers?

The Japanese language is considered one of the most difficult to learn by many English speakers. With three separate writing systems, an opposite sentence structure to English, and a complicated hierarchy of politeness, it's decidedly complex.

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How not to offend in Japanese culture?

Don't point. Pointing at people or things is considered rude in Japan. Instead of using a finger to point at something, the Japanese use a hand to gently wave at what they would like to indicate.

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What is harder Russian or Japanese?

After reading through all the differences, Russian probably comes across as the easier language to learn. And it is! For native English speakers, Russian is categorized as taking 44 weeks to learn (or 1,100 hours), while Japanese takes 88 weeks (2,200 hours).

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Do Japanese people find English hard?

Probably the most important factor is the language itself. Japanese is a very different language compared to English and other Indo-European languages. This makes learning English a real challenge for many Japanese.

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Is 30 too late to learn Japanese?

You may have heard recently that it's now impossible to study in Japan if you are over 30 years old. Luckily for those who fall in that category, this isn't actually true and it's actually never too late to chase your Japanese language dreams.

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What level of Japanese is fluent?

C2 level holders are regarded as fluent as a native language speaker, or are referred to as business level. * Japanese language tests today typically do not have a speaking section, but test-making organizations are considering incorporating a speaking section in future tests.

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Is 4 years enough to learn Japanese?

However, many experts believe it takes between 4 to 6 months of dedicated study to reach a beginner level. On the other hand, you can expect to spend at least 3 years studying to become fluent in Japanese with near-native level accuracy.

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What is the fastest spoken language?

As we've already mentioned, Japanese is considered the fastest language in the world. It is always mentioned as the first on the list. So, here are 6 of the fastest spoken languages in the world, based on the average number of syllables spoken per second (SPS): Japanese - 7.84 SPS.

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Is Japanese harder than Mandarin?

Many people are curious about how difficult Japanese is compared to Chinese – a language that many learners have difficulty mastering. Compared to Chinese, Japanese does have its own set of complexities and challenges but overall, it's considered easier for beginners.

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Which language hardest to learn?

Let's explore the 10 hardest languages for English speakers to learn, and the challenges they deliver:
  1. Mandarin. Mandarin is spoken by 70% of the Chinese population, and is the most spoken language in the world. ...
  2. Arabic. ...
  3. Japanese. ...
  4. Hungarian. ...
  5. Korean. ...
  6. Finnish. ...
  7. Basque. ...
  8. Navajo.

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Is Duolingo good to learn Japanese?

Duolingo Is Great as a Supplement

It is great for learning vocabulary and seeing how words are used in context. However, it's generally not great for learning the “why”s or “how”s of language. This includes grammar and semantics–how words interact with each other to create different meanings.

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How many hours a day should I study Japanese?

For the past 5 years of studying Japanese, I can say that 2 hours a day is more than enough to get you where you want. To give you a perspective on the matter, I would only study around one hour a day—every other day. If by 'fluent' you mean to hold a conversation, then around a couple of years.

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How long do Japanese students study?

In general, kids have to be at school by 8:45 am. School finishes around 3:15 pm, so they have to be in school for about six and a half hours every day from Monday to Friday. However, most kids also attend after-school clubs, and many also go to juku (cram school) in the evening to do extra studying.

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