階 identifies a floor of a building.

The idea

Put a number before 階: 一階 is いっかい, 二階 is にかい and 三階 is さんがい. 六階 is ろっかい and 八階 is はっかい; 十階 is じゅっかい or じっかい. Ask 何階（なんがい）. Use に for a location, as in 二階にあります.

Patterns to compare
FormReading
一階いっかい
二階にかい
三階さんがい
四階よんかい
五階ごかい
六階ろっかい
七階ななかい
八階はっかい
九階きゅうかい
十階じゅっかい／じっかい
何階なんがい

Examples

  • 受付うけつけは一階いっかいにあります。The reception desk is on the first floor.
  • カフェは二階にかいにあります。The café is on the second floor.
  • 三階さんがいへ行いってください。Please go to the third floor.
  • 私わたしの部屋へやは六階ろっかいです。My room is on the sixth floor.
  • レストランは八階はっかいにあります。The restaurant is on the eighth floor.
  • 図書館としょかんは何階なんがいですか。What floor is the library on?

Read-aloud uses a synthetic Japanese voice available on your device. Voice quality and availability vary; it does not assess your pronunciation.

Watch out

Do not confuse 階, a floor, with 回, which counts occurrences. Japanese 一階 is the ground-level floor; floor numbering can differ between countries.

Try it yourself

  1. Write the reading in hiragana: 一階

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    いっかい

    一階 is いっかい: いち shortens and a small っ precedes かい.

  2. Write the reading in hiragana: 三階

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    さんがい

    三階 is さんがい: 階 changes from かい to がい after さん.

  3. Write the reading in hiragana: 何階

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    なんがい

    何階 is なんがい: use it to ask which floor.

Use it today

Find a building directory and say which floor a shop is on, then ask someone 何階ですか.