Learner up to JLPT N2
みえる · ねむい · ぼうし
Common vocabulary that learners meet in class and in the wild.
毎日のことば · a new word every day
Find today’s three-kana word.
A daily word game that proves your knowledge of Japanese while expanding your vocabulary. Seven guesses, one word, the same for everyone.
Type kana or romaji (ko → こ), or tap the chart. Enter to guess.
How to read the hints
Every guess colors each kana. The 行 hint is what makes ことは different: it tells you about the whole row of the kana chart, not only the kana you typed.
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Right spotと is in the word, exactly here.
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Wrong spotこ is in the word, somewhere else.
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Same rowNot た, but another kana from its row (た ち つ て と) is in the word.
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Ruled outNothing from ま’s row is left in the word.
行 (gyou, “row”) is a consonant group of the kana chart. Voiced kana are their own rows: が is G, not K. A few rows bend to keep the chart simple: わ counts with や, and ん with な.
Two word lists
Everyone on the same list gets the same word each day. Switch any time; each list keeps its own games.
Advanced N2, N1 and beyond
さとす · たわら · ゆらす
N2, N1 and other common words that aren’t on the JLPT lists. Both include N2, so it’s less of a jump than it sounds.
Keep your streak in the app
- A calendar of every past day to play or replay
- Streaks and guess statistics
- Definitions for every guess, not only the answer
- A daily reminder when the next word arrives
Questions
What does the day number mean?
Puzzles are numbered by day, counting from the first ことは puzzle on January 1, 2022 (1日目). A new word starts at 11:00 UTC, the same moment everywhere.
What kinds of words can be answers?
Any common word: nouns, but also verbs and adjectives in their dictionary form, like みえる or ねむい, and words like わずか. Answers never contain small ゃゅょっ and are never loanwords. You can guess rarer words too, to get hints, even though they won’t be the answer.
Why no small ゃゅょ or っ?
ことは is balanced around a limited set of syllables. 拗音 and 促音 were tested during beta, but they made games too hard: once you knew a word had a カ行 kana, it could take seven more guesses to pin one down.
What does ことは mean?
ことは (kotoha) is a made-up word, borrowed from 言の葉 (ことのは). 言葉 (ことば) is a compound of the same word, with rendaku turning は into ば.