Once you've mastered the basics like 個, 本, 枚, and 台, you'll discover that Japanese has a whole world of more specific and surprisingly interesting counters. Some of them work very differently from English (or any other language), and you might find yourself thinking, "You can count things that way?" This article walks you through special counters for animals, clothing, food, time, and more.
Animal Counters — Sorted by Size
English uses the same counting structure for all animals, but Japanese strictly differentiates by body size:
| Counter | Reading | Animals | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 匹 (ひき) | ひき | Small: cats, dogs, fish, insects | 猫が三匹いる |
| 羽 (わ) | わ | Birds, rabbits | 鶴が二羽飛んでいる |
| 頭 (とう) | とう | Large: horses, cows, elephants, whales | 馬が一頭いる |
動物園にゾウが三頭います。 → There are three elephants at the zoo.
この池に魚が百匹以上いる。 → There are over a hundred fish in this pond.
Why Are Rabbits Counted with 羽?
This is probably the most famous piece of Japanese counter trivia. The story goes that during a period when Buddhist precepts forbade eating four-legged animals, monks who wanted to eat rabbit meat cleverly reclassified rabbits as "birds" — the reasoning being that a rabbit's long ears resemble wings. So rabbits ended up being counted with 羽, just like birds. While modern Japanese is perfectly fine with counting rabbits using 匹, the traditional and "proper" counter is still 羽.
うさぎを一羽飼っています。 → I have one rabbit.
Clothing Counters
| Counter | Reading | Used For | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 着 (ちゃく) | ちゃく | Tops, coats, full outfits | コートを一着買った |
| 足 (そく) | そく | Shoes, socks (in pairs!) | 靴を二足持っている |
| 本 (ほん) | ほん | Neckties, belts (long & thin) | ネクタイを三本持っている |
| 枚 (まい) | まい | Shirts, handkerchiefs (flat) | シャツを二枚洗った |
新しいコートを一着買いました。 → I bought a new coat.
The interesting thing about 足 (そく) is that it counts pairs — 一足 means one pair of shoes or socks, not a single shoe.
| Number | Reading |
|---|---|
| 1 | いっそく |
| 2 | にそく |
| 3 | さんぞく |
| 4 | よんそく |
| 5 | ごそく |
靴下を三足買いました。 → I bought three pairs of socks.
Food Counters
Japanese has remarkably specific counters for food, with different words for different shapes and forms:
| Counter | Reading | Used For | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 切れ (きれ) | きれ | Slices: bread, meat | パンを二切れ食べた |
| 粒 (つぶ) | つぶ | Grains/small round things: rice, pills, grapes | 薬を一粒飲んだ |
| 皿 (さら) | さら | Plates/servings: sushi, dishes | 寿司を三皿食べた |
| 玉 (たま) | たま | Whole round vegetables: cabbage, onions | キャベツを一玉買った |
| 杯 (はい) | はい | Cups/bowls: coffee, ramen | ラーメンを一杯食べた |
パンを一切れください。 → One slice of bread, please.
薬を二粒飲んでください。 → Please take two pills.
玉 (たま) is specifically for whole, round vegetables — like an entire head of cabbage or a whole onion. Don't confuse it with 個. Once you cut that onion in half, you wouldn't use 玉 anymore.
キャベツ一玉がセールで百円だった。 → A whole cabbage was on sale for 100 yen.
Time-Related Counters
| Counter | Reading | Used For | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 泊 (はく) | はく / ぱく | Overnight stays | 二泊三日の旅行 |
| 食 (しょく) | しょく | Meals | 一日三食 |
泊 (はく) is extremely common in travel contexts. Japanese describes trip duration using the format "X泊Y日" (X nights, Y days):
二泊三日で京都に行きました。 → I went to Kyoto for a 3-day, 2-night trip.
一泊二日の温泉旅行。 → A 2-day, 1-night hot spring trip.
| Number | Reading |
|---|---|
| 1 | いっぱく |
| 2 | にはく |
| 3 | さんぱく |
| 4 | よんぱく |
| 5 | ごはく |
食 (しょく) is straightforward:
一日三食きちんと食べましょう。 → Let's eat three proper meals a day.
朝食を抜いて一日二食になった。 → I skipped breakfast and ended up eating only two meals.
Other Useful Special Counters
| Counter | Reading | Used For | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 軒 (けん) | けん | Houses, shops | この通りにラーメン屋が三軒ある |
| 社 (しゃ) | しゃ | Companies | 三社に応募した |
| 通 (つう) | つう | Letters, emails | メールを一通送った |
| 曲 (きょく) | きょく | Songs, musical pieces | 一曲歌ってください |
この商店街にはパン屋が二軒あります。 → There are two bakeries on this shopping street.
五社にエントリーシートを出しました。 → I submitted applications to five companies.
彼女に手紙を一通書きました。 → I wrote her one letter.
カラオケで十曲歌った。 → I sang ten songs at karaoke.
Counter Quick-Reference Chart
| What You're Counting | Counter to Use |
|---|---|
| Small animals (cats, dogs, fish) | 匹 |
| Birds, rabbits | 羽 |
| Large animals (horses, elephants) | 頭 |
| Clothing, coats | 着 |
| Shoes, socks (pairs) | 足 |
| Sliced food | 切れ |
| Grains / pills | 粒 |
| Plated food | 皿 |
| Whole round vegetables | 玉 |
| Overnight stays | 泊 |
| Meals | 食 |
| Houses / shops | 軒 |
| Companies | 社 |
| Letters / emails | 通 |
| Songs | 曲 |
Summary
- Animal counters are divided by size: small → 匹, birds → 羽, large → 頭
- Rabbits traditionally use 羽, thanks to a Buddhist-era workaround that classified them as birds
- Shoes and socks use 足, where one 足 = one pair
- Food counters match the shape: slices → 切れ, grains → 粒, plates → 皿, whole round → 玉
- Travel stays use 泊 — 「二泊三日」 is an extremely common expression
- Letters/emails → 通, songs → 曲, companies → 社
Practice Quiz
Q1. What does each of these counters count? — 羽, 頭, 足, 通
Show Answer
- 羽 (わ) → Birds and rabbits
- 頭 (とう) → Large animals (horses, elephants, whales, etc.)
- 足 (そく) → Shoes and socks (counted in pairs)
- 通 (つう) → Letters and emails
Q2. Fill in the blanks: 「京都に＿泊＿日で行きました」 — if the trip was 4 days and 3 nights, what goes in the blanks?
Show Answer
三泊四日 (さんぱくよっか). In Japanese, trip duration is expressed as "number of nights + 泊 + total days + 日." Three nights and four days = 三泊四日.
Q3. Why are rabbits counted with 羽?
Show Answer
Legend has it that during an era when Buddhist precepts forbade eating four-legged animals, monks who wanted to eat rabbit meat argued that a rabbit's long ears resembled wings, thus classifying rabbits as "birds." So rabbits ended up sharing the bird counter 羽. In modern Japanese, using 匹 for rabbits is also perfectly acceptable.