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Tag - jlpt-n3

 
 

JLPT N3

A woman takes advantage of a public mist machine to deal with a heat wave in Tokyo last month.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Aug 14, 2026
Cruel summer: Searching for an escape from Âé¶¹´«Ã½ extreme heat
From extreme heat and tropical nights to mountain escapes, a look at the Japanese vocabulary of summer.
Retirement can bring unexpected changes to long-established relationships, prompting some Japanese couples to adjust to new routines and a shared daily life.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 17, 2026
Japanese has a word for when your husband makes you sick
Explore Âé¶¹´«Ã½ ¡°husband-origin illness¡± while learning vocabulary and grammar about marriage, retirement and relationships.
A fortune teller in Tokyo's Yanaka district reads a client's palms.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 18, 2026
Predicting the future, one Japanese grammar point at a time
From fortune tellers to weather forecasts and prediction markets, learn how Japanese expresses uncertainty.
Under the new blue ticket system, cyclists will have one week in which to pay fines for minor traffic violations.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Apr 24, 2026
The language around Âé¶¹´«Ã½ new bike rules leaves no room for ¡®maybe¡¯
Blue tickets are now being issued for minor traffic offenses, but you have to watch you don¡¯t get scammed.
True improvement comes from a long-term strategy to change unhealthy habits. Don¡¯t worry if you slip from time to time, just keep up your initial efforts.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jan 15, 2026
Just because you broke your resolution doesn¡¯t mean you failed
Breaking a New Year¡¯s resolution doesn¡¯t equal failure. Japanese grammar offers a gentler way to rethink goals and progress.
While making it to 100 is cause for a celebration, there are a few other ages that get you an extra piece of cake in Japan.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 28, 2025
Âé¶¹´«Ã½ milestone birthdays: Why 60, 77, 80, 88 and 99 matter so much
A look at Âé¶¹´«Ã½ milestone birthdays, the traditions behind them and how the grammar pattern ¡°ni totte¡± expresses their personal meaning.
Sit or stand? A gender-specific question is being discussed in the bathrooms of the nation.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Nov 26, 2025
As bathroom behavior changes, these Japanese expressions can help explain why
A subtle shift seems to be happening in the bathrooms of the nation. Learn how to describe it using structures that indicate tendencies.
The reference text A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar recently underwent a revision for the first time in nearly four decades.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Nov 19, 2025
A dictionary revision illustrates how Japanese keeps on evolving
The newly revised Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar updates example sentences and grammar notes to reflect language shifts since 1989.
The promise of autumn is one of relaxation and just being cozy overall.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Sep 18, 2025
How Japanese captures the subtle shift into autumn
From the equinox to cooler mornings, Japanese grammar and expressions reflect how the season gradually deepens into autumn.
A lot of Japanese workers join online group texts to communicate with their coworkers, but at what point do those chats threaten a healthy work-life balance?
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Aug 22, 2025
Expressing annoyance with work group chats in Japanese
Some employees value the convenience; others feel trapped by after-hours texts and social expectations embedded in office messaging culture.
Apple¡¯s Craig Federighi shows off 
a set of emoji at 
a conference on June 13, 2016. While the small pictures have proved helpful in conveying nuance in our texts, younger people are using them less often.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 11, 2025
An emoji used to say it all. Now it might say too much.
With World Emoji Day approaching, it¡¯s a good opportunity to recognize how important these digital pictures have become.
People carry a portable shrine at Sensoji temple during the Sanja Festival in May. The festival is one of the three largest in Tokyo.
LIFE / Language
Jul 5, 2025
What¡¯s the first thing you think of when you think of a Japanese summer?
Fireworks and festivals are part of the traditional Japanese summer, but what do people associate with the season these days?
Get those umbrellas out, rainy season has arrived in much of Japan.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 12, 2025
In the forecast for June ¡ª a lot of talk about the weather
From ¡°tsuyu¡± to ¡°amayadori,¡± the current season has no shortage of vocabulary for downpours, floods and wet weather.
As humidity rises in the rainy season, it¡¯s a good idea to get some moisture absorbers and place them around the home.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
May 30, 2025
How to talk about change in Japanese ¡ª one forecast at a time
Use the changing seasons as a springboard to learn how Japanese expresses cause-and-effect shifts.
A Japanese newspaper headline includes the word "tariff" in Japanese.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
May 9, 2025
Trump once called it his favorite word. Now, the Japanese version is all over the news.
Learning how to talk about tariffs, imports and exports is becoming increasingly necessary in everyday conversation.
As in other cultures, when someone shares bad news in Japanese it¡¯s best to respond with supportive words.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Apr 26, 2025
How to bring up bad news in Japanese
A few grammatical structures can help you talk about being sick, but set phrases will come in handy when the illness is more severe.
Signs advertising the upcoming World Expo in Osaka have proliferated in the city's different neighborhood for the past few years.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Apr 11, 2025
I¡¯ve only just come back from Osaka, but I¡¯m ready to hit the Expo
The term ¡°bakari¡± can be used in several different ways to emphasize and define the limit of a range.
The ͨÇÚ½U· (ts¨±kin keiro, commuting route) is a big part of most working Tokyoites¡¯ daily routines.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Mar 14, 2025
From ¡®commuting¡¯ to ¡®passing through,¡¯ meet the kanji that¡¯s always on the move
The character ͨ is also used to denote avenues and forms of communication.
While you need to pass over cash for taxes, don't fall for scams that trick you into paying what you don't owe.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Mar 6, 2025
Scams, taxes and tariffs: It¡¯s that time of year.
Financial scams abound in Japan and a new one uses tax-related terminology.
While AI has added increased uncertainty over what is and isn't true, misinformation has been around for a while.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Feb 14, 2025
How to tell if what you¡¯re hearing is true (or just sounds like it is)
Some Japanese grammatical terms signal uncertainty, and that is when you need phrases to help you get to the truth of the matter.

Longform

Disaster relief workers Taichi Kato (left) and Seiji Yoshimura enter the collapsed living quarters at Kyuganji temple in Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture.
What Kumamoto revealed about Âé¶¹´«Ã½ earthquake readiness

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