Home › Free Language Tools › Japanese vocabulary › Common Actions

Japanese Common Actions Vocabulary

Here are Japanese words for common actions and verbs to start with: 座る (suwaru, sit), 眠る (nemuru, sleep), 立つ (tatsu, stand), 起きる (okiru, wake). Below are 32 words (A1–A2) with their English translations, part of speech and a romanization to help you say them, across 4 themed lists.

A woman walking a dog in a park
Photo: neelam279

Common Actions Basics

A1
EnglishJapaneseTypeLevel
sit座るsuwaruverbA1
sleep眠るnemuruverbA1
stand立つtatsuverbA1
to lie横になるyoko ni naruverbA1
to start始まるhajimaruverbA1
to turn曲がるmagaruverbA1
wake起きるokiruverbA1
walk歩くarukuverbA1

The rest of this pack is in the app

Common Actions Intermediate

A1
EnglishJapaneseTypeLevel
carry運ぶhakobuverbA1
catch受け止めるuketomeruverbA1
closed閉まったshimattaadjA1
join参加するsanka suruverbA1
keep取っておくtotte okuverbA1
kick蹴るkeruverbA1
pray祈るinoruverbA1
put置くokuverbA1

Common Actions Advanced

A1–A2
EnglishJapaneseTypeLevel
forget忘れるwasureruverbA1
habit習慣shuukannounA1
imagine想像するsouzou suruverbA1
apologize謝るayamaruverbA2
appreciate感謝するkansha suruverbA2
establish設立するsetsuritsu suruverbA2
expect期待するkitai suruverbA2
image画像gazounounA2

More from this pack waits in the app

B1 Verbs

A2
EnglishJapaneseTypeLevel
to allow許可するkyoka suruverbA2
to apply応募するoubo suruverbA2
to belong〜のものだno mono daverbA2
to cause引き起こすhikiokosuverbA2
to earn稼ぐkaseguverbA2
to fail失敗するshippai suruverbA2
to form形成するkeisei suruverbA2
to offer申し出るmoushideruverbA2

Keep going with this pack in the app

Emoji: Twemoji, CC-BY 4.0

A sample of the A1–A2 words. The rest are in the app

Watch Your LanguageVocabulary widgets for iPhone & Apple Watch

These lists show a sample of the A1–A2 words for common actions and verbs. The packs in Watch Your Language hold more and reach the advanced levels, along with every other topic.

The app shows them to you a few at a time, in a widget on your iPhone Lock Screen and on your Apple Watch face, and brings back the ones you keep forgetting.

Common questions

Which Japanese words should I learn for common actions and verbs?

You could start with words like 座る (suwaru, sit), 眠る (nemuru, sleep), 立つ (tatsu, stand), 起きる (okiru, wake). This page lists 32 Japanese words for common actions and verbs (A1–A2), each with its English translation and part of speech.

How can I remember these Japanese words?

Reading a list once is rarely enough. Watch Your Language shows Japanese words like these in a widget on your iPhone Lock Screen and on your Apple Watch face, and schedules repeats so the words you keep forgetting come back more often.

Are these word lists free?

Yes. The lists on this page are free to read, with no sign-up. The app holds more words for each topic.

More Japanese word lists