助数詞

## What it means Counters are small words you attach to numbers when counting things in Japanese. Different kinds of things use different counters, similar to how English says "two slices" of bread or "three sheets" of paper, except in Japanese almost everything needs one.

## When to use it Some common counters: つ for general objects, 人 (にん) for people, 枚 for flat things like paper or tickets, 台 for machines and vehicles, and 冊 for books. Attach the counter right after the number, like 三枚 (three sheets) or 二台 (two vehicles). For general objects there's also a native counting set: ひとつ、ふたつ、みっつ、よっつ、いつつ、むっつ、ななつ、やっつ、ここのつ、とお.

## Don't confuse it with A classic mistake is using つ to count people instead of 人. People have their own irregular readings for one and two: 一人 is ひとり and 二人 is ふたり, then from three onward it becomes regular, like 三人 (さんにん).