Explore 個 in counting and in words about individuals. Learn each reading in a complete word.

The idea

個 has 10 strokes. As a counter it is read こ: 三個 is さんこ, but 一個 is いっこ and 六個 is ろっこ. 個人（こじん） means an individual; 個別（こべつ） means separate or individual.

Patterns to compare
Japanese wordReading
一個いっこ
三個さんこ
六個ろっこ
個人こじん
個別こべつ

Examples

  • 私わたしは卵たまごを一個いっこ買かいました。I bought one egg.
  • 箱はこに小ちいさな石いしが三個さんこあります。There are three small stones in the box.
  • 六個ろっこの菓子かしを友達ともだちと分わけました。I shared six sweets with a friend.
  • 個人こじんの意見いけんを尊重そんちょうします。I respect individual opinions.
  • 質問しつもんには個別こべつに答こたえます。I answer questions individually.
  • この店みせでは一個いっこから注文ちゅうもんできます。At this shop, you can order just one item.

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 read 一個 as いちこ: the small っ marks a doubled consonant. 個 counts individual objects; use a suitable specific counter when the context calls for one.

Try it yourself

  1. Write the reading of 一個 in hiragana.

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    いっこ

    一個 is いっこ: 一 changes before 個. The sentence counts one egg.

  2. Write the reading of 個人 in hiragana.

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    こじん

    個人 is こじん, an individual person. 個人の意見 means an individual’s opinion.

  3. Choose the missing kanji: ＿別（こべつ）［個／固］.

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    個

    個 completes 個別（こべつ）, meaning separately or individually; 固 is a different character.

Use it today

Write 個 using the linked stroke diagram. Cover the readings, say 一個 and 個人, then make a sentence counting objects.