いくら
ikura[ikɯ̟ɾa̠]
The English phrase "how much money" is translated into Japanese as いくら (ikura).
いくら is used to ask about the price of something.
How do you pronounce it?
ikura
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers may be confused by the homophone 'ikura', which refers to salmon roe (fish eggs) in a culinary context.
Did you know?
- When asking いくら at a market, it is common to accompany the phrase with a gesture of holding your hand flat and moving it in a small circular motion.
- Japanese has a specific word 値切る 'nekiru' for the act of haggling over the price after asking いくら.
- In some contexts, いくら can be used as an adverb meaning 'no matter how much', such as in the phrase 'no matter how much I try'.
Examples in context
- いくら欲しいの？How much money do you want?Tatoeba #11561736 by small_snow, translation #16790 by CK
- いくら拾ったの？How much money did you find?Tatoeba #12088403 by small_snow, translation #8276424 by CK
- 今いくら持ってる？How much money do you have with you right now?Tatoeba #2912051 by tommy_san, translation #2912031 by CK
- いくら？How much is this?
- 18 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Ren and Yui are shopping at a fruit stand.
- 蓮 Ren結衣、このイチゴはいくら？Yui, kono ichigo wa ikura?Yui, how much are these strawberries?
- 結衣 Yuiええと、五百円だよ。Eeto, gohyaku en da yo.Let's see, they are 500 yen.
- 蓮 Ren少し高いね。Sukoshi takai ne.That's a bit expensive.
- 結衣 Yuiでも、すごく甘いよ！Demo, sugoku amai yo!But they are very sweet!
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry いくら, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
