Japanese · JLPT Band 1 (N5) · Chapter 10
なんさいですかHow old are you?
Numbers ichi–jū and the age counter sai: Nansai desu ka — Jussai desu. Watch where number readings shift (shi/yon, shichi/nana, kyū/ku). No new grammar — desu is reused. Kana: reading numbers fluently.
Dialogue
i
Study this section in the Bookverse app
- Spaced repetition schedules your reviews
- Practice tasks with pass tracking
- A teacher on every study screen
- Progress saved across chapters and devices — laptop and phone
- Audio playback for dialogues and words
- Speaking practice with feedback
- Search dictionaries and chat with AI, all inside the app
Sign up and start studying in the Bookverse app.
You will be asked to register first.
なんさいですか— How Old Are You?
- Yukiマイクさんのおとうとはなんさいですか。Mike, how old is your younger brother?
- Mikeくさいです。He's nine. (slip: "ku-sai" — natural is kyū-sai)
- Yuki「きゅうさい」ですね。いもうとはなんさいですか。It's "kyū-sai", right. How old is your younger sister?
- Mikeいっさいです。とてもちいさいです!She's one. She's very small!
Dialogue
i
Study this section in the Bookverse app
- Spaced repetition schedules your reviews
- Practice tasks with pass tracking
- A teacher on every study screen
- Progress saved across chapters and devices — laptop and phone
- Audio playback for dialogues and words
- Speaking practice with feedback
- Search dictionaries and chat with AI, all inside the app
Sign up and start studying in the Bookverse app.
You will be asked to register first.
よんさい? しさい?— Yonsai? Shisai?
- Kenマイクさんのいもうとはなんさいですか。Mike, how old is your younger sister?
- Mikeしさいです。She's four. (slip: "shi-sai" — natural is yon-sai)
- Ken「よんさい」ですよ。「し」じゃないです。おとうとは?It's "yon-sai". Not "shi". And your younger brother?
- Mikeななさいです。みんなちいさいですね!He's seven. They're all little, aren't they!
Vocabulary
i
Study this section in the Bookverse app
- Spaced repetition schedules your reviews
- Practice tasks with pass tracking
- A teacher on every study screen
- Progress saved across chapters and devices — laptop and phone
- Audio playback for dialogues and words
- Speaking practice with feedback
- Search dictionaries and chat with AI, all inside the app
Sign up and start studying in the Bookverse app.
You will be asked to register first.
- いち
numeralone
- に
numeraltwo
- さん
numeralthree
- よん
numeralfour (also shi)
- ご
numeralfive
- ろく
numeralsix
- なな
numeralseven (also shichi)
- はち
numeraleight
- きゅう
numeralnine (also ku)
- じゅう
numeralten
- さい
count.(age counter) years old
- なんさい
pronounhow old
Grammar
i
Study this section in the Bookverse app
- Spaced repetition schedules your reviews
- Practice tasks with pass tracking
- A teacher on every study screen
- Progress saved across chapters and devices — laptop and phone
- Audio playback for dialogues and words
- Speaking practice with feedback
- Search dictionaries and chat with AI, all inside the app
Sign up and start studying in the Bookverse app.
You will be asked to register first.
Numbers + the age counter さい (sai)
Explanation
No new grammar — age uses the desu you already know. Ask age with Nansai desu ka, and answer with a number + sai: Jussai desu (10 years old). Some numbers have two readings: 4 = shi/yon, 7 = shichi/nana, 9 = kyū/ku. Before sai the sound shifts: 1 → issai, 8 → hassai, 10 → jussai — watch for it.
Examples
- なんさいですか。— じゅっさいです。How old are you? — Ten years old.
- おとうとは ろくさいです。My younger brother is six.
- いもうとは いっさいです。My younger sister is one.
Kana
i
Study this section in the Bookverse app
- Spaced repetition schedules your reviews
- Practice tasks with pass tracking
- A teacher on every study screen
- Progress saved across chapters and devices — laptop and phone
- Audio playback for dialogues and words
- Speaking practice with feedback
- Search dictionaries and chat with AI, all inside the app
Sign up and start studying in the Bookverse app.
You will be asked to register first.
ひらがな: すうじを すらすら よむ— Hiragana: Reading Numbers Fluently
The numbers and their readings:
- いち・に・さんichi · ni · san1 · 2 · 3
- よん（し）・ご・ろくyon (shi) · go · roku4 · 5 · 6 — 4 has two readings
- なな（しち）・はちnana (shichi) · hachi7 · 8 — 7 has two readings
- きゅう（く）・じゅうkyū (ku) · jū9 · 10 — 9 has two readings
Read aloud:
Want to actually learn this — with audio, spaced repetition and progress tracking?
Study in the app →