How do you say "make" in Japanese?

In Japanese, "make" is かける (denwa o kakeru). It is a verb pronounced "deh-n-wah oh kah-keh-roo".

Listen to the pronunciation:

Pronunciation

かける is written in hiragana. Romanised as denwa o kakeru, it sounds roughly like "deh-n-wah oh kah-keh-roo" to an English ear.

Example sentence

週末にかけますつもりです。

Shuumatsu ni denwa o kakemasu tsumori desu.

I plan to to make (a phone call) this weekend.

Usage notes

かける means to make (a phone call) in Japanese. This is an everyday verb that learners encounter early. Mastering its masu form (かけます) and te-form opens up many sentence patterns.

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Questions about かける

How do you pronounce かける?

かける is romanised as denwa o kakeru. Say it roughly like "deh-n-wah oh kah-keh-roo" in English. Each Japanese syllable has even weight, so keep the rhythm steady.

Is かける formal or casual?

かける is the plain (dictionary) form, used in casual speech and in dictionaries. For polite situations, verbs take a different ending, typically -masu. In Noun Town the game always shows the dictionary form.

How is かける written in Japanese?

かける is written using hiragana. Hiragana is the basic Japanese syllabary used for native words and grammatical elements.

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.