Japanese Vocabulary by Theme

Year-related words: last year, next year, ancient/modern eras, and year-counter expressions.

Spring, summer, autumn, winter and weather-related season words.

All twelve months plus this/last/next month and month-counter patterns.

Days of the week, weekday/weekend, this/last/next week, and week-counter words.

Yesterday, today, tomorrow plus morning, noon, afternoon, evening, and time-of-day phrases.

North, south, east, west, intercardinals, and direction-giving phrases.

Up, down, left, right, inside, outside, and spatial relation words.

Meters, kilograms, yen, percent, degrees, and everyday measurement units.

Country names in Japanese — every continent, with kanji and katakana readings.

Classroom, blackboard, homework, teachers, and school facilities.

Student types, year levels, club activities, and academic life terms.

University majors and academic fields: engineering, medicine, law, more.

Jobs and careers in Japanese: teacher, doctor, engineer, journalist, police, banker, chef, and more.

Immediate and extended family — parents, siblings, grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins, in-laws.

Sun, rain, snow, cloud, and weather-related verbs and adjectives.

Primary colors, extended shades, and noun + i-adjective forms.

Pollution, recycling, sustainability, climate, and conservation terms.

Energy, oil, gas, water, electricity, and natural-resource vocabulary.

Wood, metal, paper, plastic, glass, and everyday material names.

Rice, miso soup, toast, eggs — Japanese-and-Western breakfast items.

Rice bowls, noodles, set meals, curry, and lunch/dinner staples.

Soy sauce, miso, vinegar, salt, pepper, mirin, and pantry basics.

Sweet, salty, sour, bitter, spicy, and food-texture descriptors.

Water, juice, soda, milk, coffee, and cafe and restaurant drinks.

Green tea, sencha, hojicha, matcha, and tea-ceremony related terms.

Sake, shochu, beer, wine, whisky, and izakaya drink vocabulary.

Cookies, chips, chocolate, ice cream, dango, and Japanese sweets.

Milk, cheese, butter, yogurt, cream, and dairy-product names.

Rice, wheat, barley, oats, soybeans, and grain-product vocabulary.

Knives, pots, pans, whisks, graters, and Japanese kitchen tools.

Chopsticks, bowls, plates, cups, trays, and Japanese tableware.

Apples, bananas, oranges, strawberries, tropical and exotic fruits — full produce list.

Carrots, potatoes, onions, cabbage, spinach, broccoli — kitchen and salad staples.

Beef, pork, chicken, lamb, ham, bacon, and meat-cut vocabulary.

Tuna, salmon, shrimp, octopus, squid, scallop, clam — sushi-grade and shellfish vocabulary.

Hammer, screwdriver, drill, saw, pliers, chisel, ladder — household and specialty tools.

Cooking, cleaning, laundry, vacuuming, and daily household chores.

Repair, replace, install, fix — household-maintenance phrases.

Mop, broom, bucket, sponge, detergent, polish — basic and specialty cleaning tools.

Washing machine, dryer, detergent, hangers, fabric softener, lint roller — full laundry vocabulary.

Needle, thread, scissors, sewing machine, and sewing-action verbs.

Call, ring, voicemail, smartphone, charger, signal, area code — full phone vocabulary.

Email, letter, stamp, envelope, parcel, registered mail — postal and digital mail vocabulary.

Road, sidewalk, crossing, traffic light, sign, tunnel, bridge, intersection, plaza — street vocabulary.

Bakery, butcher, fishmonger, convenience store — shop names.

Theme park, arcade, karaoke, movie theater — entertainment venues.

Account, deposit, withdraw, ATM, interest, bills, coins, currency exchange — full banking vocabulary.

Stamp, postcard, address, ZIP code, express mail, tracking, customs — postal vocabulary.

Book, shelf, borrow, return, library card, hardcover, paperback, biography — library and book vocabulary.

Hair cut, shampoo, color, perm, scissors, dryer, curlers, face shave — salon services and tools.

Pre-school, teacher, child, playtime, stroller, baby bottle, diapers — kindergarten and childcare vocabulary.

Pump, fuel, regular, premium, oil, tire — gas-station words.

Judge, lawyer, witness, verdict, trial, appeal, prosecutor, jury, plea, evidence — courtroom vocabulary.

Officer, report, arrest, license, patrol, evidence, fingerprint, baton — police-procedure and equipment.

Cell, guard, sentence, parole, inmate — corrections-system terms.

Buy, price, discount, receipt, cart, purchase, refund, merchandise, promotion — full shopping vocabulary.

Cash, card, change, coins, electronic money, checkout terms.

Aisle, basket, scale, register, produce section — shop layout.

Medicine, prescription, pill, bandage, insulin, sedative — over-the-counter and specialty pharmacy.

Rose, tulip, sunflower, cherry blossom, iris, lavender, daffodil, peony — common and specialty flowers.

Bouquet, vase, ribbon, arrangement — florist-related terms.

Wristwatch, clock, alarm, battery, second-hand — timepiece parts.

Ring, necklace, earrings, bracelet — jewelry and gem names.

Shirts, pants, jackets, dresses, shoes — clothing-item vocabulary.

Cat, dog, hamster, fish, rabbit — household-pet vocabulary.

Lion, elephant, giraffe, panda, monkey — zoo-animal vocabulary.

Burger, fries, soda, set meal, take-out, drive-thru, condiments, ketchup — full fast-food vocabulary.

Americano, latte, espresso, cup size, pastry, sandwich, barista, refill — full cafe vocabulary.

Doctor, sick, medicine, fever, cold — basic health vocabulary.

Head, hand, foot, eye, ear — body-part vocabulary for everyday use.

One to ten, hundreds, thousands, dates, and number-counter forms.