How do you say "second" in Japanese?

二番目

nibanme

Noun Kanji

In Japanese, "second" is 二番目 (nibanme).

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Pronunciation

Say ni-ban-ME, following the same pattern as first but starting with ni, meaning two, instead of ichi.

Writing and usage

二番目 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

彼はわずかに2位に入った。

kareha wazukani 2 kurai ni itsutsu ta.

He came in second by a hair.

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How to remember 二番目

Nibanme swaps in ni, two, right where ichibanme had one - the pattern makes second easy once you know first.

Related words

Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.

Questions about 二番目

How do you pronounce 二番目?

Say ni-ban-ME, following the same pattern as first but starting with ni, meaning two, instead of ichi.

Is 二番目 formal or casual?

二番目 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 二番目 written in Japanese?

二番目 is written using kanji. Romanised, it reads as nibanme.

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.

"Second" 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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