Counters › 名
名 (mei) — counting people (formal)
The polite counter for people, used in restaurants, hotels and announcements. In everyday speech use 人.
How to count with 名, 1 to 10
| # | Reading | Romaji | Written |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | いちめい | ichimei | 1名 |
| 2 | にめい | nimei | 2名 |
| 3 | さんめい | sanmei | 3名 |
| 4 | よんめい | yonmei | 4名 |
| 5 | ごめい | gomei | 5名 |
| 6 | ろくめい | rokumei | 6名 |
| 7 | ななめい | nanamei | 7名 |
| 8 | はちめい | hachimei | 8名 |
| 9 | きゅうめい | kyuumei | 9名 |
| 10 | じゅうめい | juumei | 10名 |
🔊 Tap any reading to hear it spoken.
Watch out
No irregular forms at all, which makes it easier than 人 — but using it about yourself sounds stiff.
In a sentence
| Japanese | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 四名様ですね | よんめいさまですね yonmeisamadesune | A party of four, is that right? |
| 参加者は十名です | さんかしゃはじゅうめいです sankashahajuumeidesu | There are ten participants. |
The kanji
Other counters
- つ (tsu) — the all-purpose counter
- 人 (nin) — people
- 本 (hon) — long, thin things
- 枚 (mai) — flat, thin things
- 個 (ko) — small, roundish objects
- 匹 (hiki) — small animals
- 頭 (tou) — large animals
- 冊 (satsu) — books and bound volumes
- 台 (dai) — machines and vehicles
- 杯 (hai) — cupfuls and glassfuls
- 階 (kai) — floors of a building
- 回 (kai) — times / occurrences
- 歳 (sai) — age in years
- 軒 (ken) — houses and shops
- 足 (soku) — pairs of footwear
- 着 (chaku) — suits and outfits
- 通 (tsuu) — letters and documents
- 番 (ban) — order and rank
- 分 (fun) — minutes
- 時 (ji) — o'clock
- 年 (nen) — years
- ヶ月 (kagetsu) — months (duration)
- 週間 (shuukan) — weeks
- 泊 (haku) — nights of a stay
- 日 (nichi) — days and dates