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Insight Horizon Media

How should a beginner learn Japanese?

Author

Christopher Anderson

Published Mar 13, 2026

How should a beginner learn Japanese?

How to Teach Yourself Japanese in 8 Steps: The Beginner’s Guide

  1. Learn to Read Hiragana.
  2. Become Familiar with Katakana.
  3. Familiarize Yourself with Kanji.
  4. Build a Core Vocabulary.
  5. Learn Basic Japanese Pronunciation.
  6. Get Familiar with Basic Particles.
  7. Learn Japanese Sentence Structure.
  8. Learn Basic Greetings and Expressions.

What is the easiest type of Japanese to learn?

But hiragana and katakana are easy to pick up — you could master them in a day. They’re just the Japanese alphabet and each one represents a syllable. What is this? And as for kanji, focus on the language hacks we mentioned!

Can I learn Japanese by myself?

Yes, you can learn a lot of Japanese on your own. You can learn Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji. You can learn to read. You can improve your listening comprehension by watching Netflix and YouTube.

How good is Tofugu?

Tofugu was a standout. The writing is compelling, the people that work there are smart and friendly, and everyone seems to truly care about the important contribution they are making to people studying Japanese. Tofugu eventually released two original learning resources.

Can I learn Japanese by watching anime?

Watching Anime can certainly be a useful tool to learn Japanese language. Yes, people can learn at least a bit watching anime! Although it may be tricky at times, it is possible to enjoy and learn Japanese at the same time.

Is Japanese or English harder?

If you are a native speaker of English, learning Japanese can seem like an ambitious endeavor. In fact, the US Foreign Service Institute considers Japanese to be one of the most difficult languages to learn for an English speaker (along with Arabic, Chinese, and Korean).

Does duolingo teach swear words?

Duolingo / 2021. Learning a new language can be a dull process. And often you’ll learn all kinds of swear words and slang first. A new series of courses that teaches you what you really want to learn – swear words, real slang and expressions used by real people.