Ikutsu and Nansai: Ask How Many and How Old

いくつ can ask how many things or, with the right context, how old someone is. 何歳 asks age more explicitly. Use the noun and situation to resolve the difference; a number alone does not tell you what is being counted.

Formation and use

Generic つ counting is useful for many everyday items: 一つ（ひとつ）, 二つ（ふたつ）, 三つ（みっつ）. It is not a universal substitute for every specialised counter, especially people.

何歳 is read なんさい. Age uses 歳: 二十五歳. 二十歳 has the common special reading はたち. Polite おいくつですか asks age, but whether to ask is also a social choice.

Comparisons and common errors

For a quantity, identify the item: りんごはいくつありますか. The reply 三つあります keeps the counter and existence verb. For age, 三歳です uses a noun predicate instead.

A quantity can follow an object phrase: りんごを三つ買います. Do not put を between 三 and つ or add a second を after the quantity in this basic pattern.

Practise with explanations

Try the 10 questions below, or open the practice set. Check each answer or the whole set, read the explanation, and retry mistakes. First-attempt results are kept separately on this device.

Connected lessons

• Japanese Counters: Ko, Hon, Mai, and Nin
• Nani or Nan: Read and Use 何 in Questions
• Japanese Masu Form: Polite Present, Negative, and Past