二十一
nijūichi[ɲ̟iʑɨːit͡ɕi]
The English phrase "twenty-one" is translated into Japanese as 二十一 (nijūichi).
二十一 is the cardinal number for twenty-one.
Meaning: cardinal number (num)
What does it mean word for word?
The number is composed of 二 (two), 十 (ten) and 一 (one), literally meaning 'two tens and one'.
How do you pronounce it?
nijūichi
Did you know?
- If you were counting objects like books or long cylindrical items, you would use a different counter after 二十一, such as 冊 (satsu) for books.
- Japanese has two distinct number systems: the Sino-Japanese system used for 二十一 and the native Japanese 'Wago' system, though the latter is rarely used for numbers this high.
- In some traditional contexts, the number twenty-one can be part of the concept of 'coming of age' in Japan, as twenty is the official age of adulthood.
Examples in context
- 二十一歳です。nijūissai desu.I am twenty-one years old.
- 二十一個あります。nijūikko arimasu.There are twenty-one pieces.
Example conversation
Kenta and Himari are counting the number of colored pencils in a box.
- 健太 Kenta鉛筆は何本ある？enpitsu wa nanbon aru?How many pencils are there?
- 陽葵 Himari二十一本あるよ。nijūichihon aru yo.There are twenty-one.
- 健太 Kenta二十一本も！多いね。nijūichihon mo! ooi ne.Twenty-one! That's a lot.
- 陽葵 Himari健太くん、数えてみて。Kenta-kun, kazoete mite.Kenta, try counting them.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “twenty-one” translations and entries 二十一, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
