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Japanese vocabulary · Beginner
How do you say "few" in Japanese?
少数
shousuu
In Japanese, "few" is 少数 (shousuu).
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Pronunciation
Say shou-SUU, with a long held first vowel and a clipped final suu, quite different in rhythm from the single-syllable English word.
Writing and usage
少数 is written using kanji. It's a noun, and this word is also taught inside the Noun Town language learning game, where it appears in interactive lessons alongside hundreds of other everyday words.
Example sentence
来たのはほんの数人だけだった。
kita nohahonno suunin dakedatta.
Only a few people showed up.
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How to remember 少数
Shousuu starts with shou, small, hinting that only a small number showed up.
Related words
- dozen 12 12
- hundred 百 hyaku
- thousand 千 sen
- million 百万 hyakuman
- billion 10億 10 oku
- half 半分 hanbun
- quarter 四分の一 yonbun no ichi
- double ダブル daburu
- triple トリプル toripuru
Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.
Questions about 少数
How do you pronounce 少数?
Say shou-SUU, with a long held first vowel and a clipped final suu, quite different in rhythm from the single-syllable English word.
Is 少数 formal or casual?
少数 is a neutral, everyday word that works in both casual and polite speech. The level of formality comes from the sentence structure around it, not from the word itself.
How is 少数 written in Japanese?
少数 is written using kanji. Romanised, it reads as shousuu.
Where can I practice Japanese words for free?
You can play free Japanese minigames in your browser on the Noun Town online games page, with no sign-up needed. Every word in the Japanese glossary also has native audio and an example sentence you can revisit any time.
"Few" in other languages
Curated by Jack Ratcliffe
This word is part of the vocabulary taught in the Japanese language learning game Noun Town, where words are introduced through play rather than memorisation. Want to play the full game? Get Noun Town on Steam.
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