N4 · 40 words

Customs and events

New Year, summer festivals, weddings and the other dates the year is organised around.

The Japanese year runs on a calendar of shared occasions, and the words for them come with expectations attached: 年賀状(ねんがじょう) are written in December to arrive on the first of January, children receive お年玉(おとしだま), and in summer many people travel home for お盆(おぼん). Several of these words carry the polite prefix お as a fixed part of the word: お正月(しょうがつ), お盆(ぼん), お年玉(としだま).

The words

Verb (2)

祝うto celebrateVerbN4

祖母(そぼ)の八十歳(はちじゅっさい)の誕生日(たんじょうび)を家族(かぞく)で祝(いわ)いました。We celebrated my grandmother's eightieth birthday as a family.

飾るto decorate; to put on displayVerbN4

玄関(げんかん)に花(はな)を飾(かざ)りました。I put some flowers in the entrance hall.

This list belongs to Tradition, culture and belief — five lists and 204 words that can also be practised as a whole.

Practise this list

Multiple choice and gaps, drawn from exactly these 40 words. Whatever you get wrong comes back tomorrow.