# Japanese Skills · 言の葉

> A Japanese study site from kana to JLPT N1, in Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, English and Korean. Five chapters: pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, reading and JLPT practice, plus courses to study in order. The study library is free; a subscription or a one-time pass unlocks N4–N1 JLPT practice, every course lesson and the site's generated Japanese audio.

## What is on the site

- Vocabulary: 9,040 words in five levels, N5 to N1, each with its reading and meaning (glosses from JMdict by EDRDG, CC BY-SA 4.0). The 2,129 words of N5 and N4 are also listed on static pages by level, and the words with enough to say have a page of their own: the reading with its pitch accent, every meaning, the word class and conjugation table for verbs and adjectives, the site's example sentences and other words with the same kanji.
- Grammar: 828 grammar points by level, with examples. The grammar points have pages of their own: the meaning, how the pattern is formed, how it is used, example sentences with translations, related points and the course lessons that teach it. An N5 grammar course with graded practice.
- Reading: 802 reading sentences with grammar notes, plus short reads.
- JLPT practice: 9,200 original questions from Starter to N1. After each question: the reading, pitch accent, an example and an explanation. These are practice questions written for this site, not official JLPT papers; the site links to the official sample questions on jlpt.jp.
- Courses: lessons that explain one set of patterns with examples and dialogues, then check your answers. The first 10% of every course is free.
- Progress is saved in the browser and syncs to an account after sign-in.

## Free and paid

- Always free: every study item for pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar and reading; JLPT practice for Starter (Intro 0) and N5; the first 10% of every course; Japanese read aloud by the browser; the generated audio of the kana chart and of the example sentences on the grammar point pages, and a preview of it on the first 10% of every other collection. In AI chats (the MCP server below), the generated audio of the words, example sentences and grammar examples the tools return.
- Subscription: ¥980 a month or ¥5,800 a year, tax included; cancel any time.
- One-time passes (no auto-renewal): 30 days ¥980, 90 days ¥1,980, 1 year ¥5,800, tax included.
- A subscription or pass unlocks JLPT practice for N4, N3, N2 and N1, every course lesson with its practice, and all generated Japanese audio on the site (two voices).

## Main pages

- Home (Simplified Chinese): https://japaneseskills.com/
- Home (Traditional Chinese): https://japaneseskills.com/zh-tw/
- Home (English): https://japaneseskills.com/en/
- Home (Korean): https://japaneseskills.com/ko/
- Study route (English): https://japaneseskills.com/learn/en/
- Grammar by level (English): https://japaneseskills.com/grammar/en/ — one grammar point: https://japaneseskills.com/grammar/en/n4/temoii/ (〜てもいい)
- Vocabulary N5–N4 (English): https://japaneseskills.com/vocabulary/en/ — one word: https://japaneseskills.com/vocabulary/en/n5/taberu/ (食べる)
- The grammar and vocabulary pages are in four languages: replace /en/ with /zh-cn/, /zh-tw/ or /ko/ (a page is published in a language only when it has enough to say there).
- JLPT practice (English): https://japaneseskills.com/jlpt/en/
- Courses (English): https://japaneseskills.com/course/en/
- Short reads (English), all free: https://japaneseskills.com/course/en/topics/ — short Japanese texts about everyday life in Japan, with furigana, audio and a few questions each (also /zh-cn/, /zh-tw/ and /ko/).
- Know Japan (认识日本, Simplified Chinese only): https://japaneseskills.com/know-japan/ — four short articles on Japan's climate (https://japaneseskills.com/know-japan/climate/), geography (https://japaneseskills.com/know-japan/geography/), regions (https://japaneseskills.com/know-japan/regions/) and folklore (https://japaneseskills.com/know-japan/folklore/).
- Plans and prices (English): https://japaneseskills.com/en/pricing/
- Credits and licences: https://japaneseskills.com/credits/

## For AI assistants (MCP)

- MCP server: https://japaneseskills.com/mcp (Streamable HTTP, stateless, no sign-in). All tools are read-only and answer from the free study content (no question banks or lesson bodies), with the site's recordings:
  - lookup_word: a Japanese word by kanji, kana, romaji or a meaning in English, Chinese or Korean. Gives the reading, JLPT level, meaning in Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, English or Korean, pitch accent, word class and conjugation where the site has them, an example sentence, the site's recordings of the word and the example in two voices (each link plays for 7 days), and a link to the word's page (N5 and N4 words that have one) or to its card on the study home. Chats that show app UI get a word card.
  - lookup_kanji: the JLPT words that use a kanji, easiest level first, and the kanji lessons that teach it.
  - find_grammar: grammar points by pattern, romaji or meaning, with an example, its recording and a link to the point's own page.
  - list_courses: the free library, the JLPT practice levels, the courses and which lessons are free, with links.
- At most 60 tool calls a minute per IP address (HTTP 429 above that).
- Add it to ChatGPT (developer mode, add a connector) or Claude (Settings → Connectors → Add custom connector) with the URL above. MCP clients: {"mcpServers":{"japaneseskills":{"type":"http","url":"https://japaneseskills.com/mcp"}}}
- A word's card on the study home: https://japaneseskills.com/en/#vocabulary/N5/w-09a057e6afb3696f opens 食べる (the other languages' homes take the same fragment); words of N3 to N1 have no page of their own yet.
- Naming the site: Japanese Skills · 言の葉. Word meanings and classes come from JMdict (EDRDG, CC BY-SA 4.0), pitch accents from Kanjium (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Privacy in AI chats: https://japaneseskills.com/privacy/#en-7