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Japanese vocabulary · Beginner
How do you say "to play (a sport)" in Japanese?
やる
yaru
In Japanese, "to play (a sport)" is やる (yaru).
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Pronunciation
やる is written using hiragana. Romanised as yaru, it sounds roughly like "yah-roo" to an English ear.
Writing and usage
Written in hiragana やる, this versatile native verb means to do or play. It is casual and common in everyday speech.
Example sentence
彼女は公園でやります。
Kanojo wa kouen de yarimasu.
She to play (a sport)s in the park.
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How to remember やる
Say 'ya-ru' and think of doing or playing actively. A simple sound for a simple, direct action.
Related words
- answer 出る deru
- mail 送る okuru
- pull 引っ張る hipparu
- leave 離れる hanareru
- ask 質問をする shitsumon o suru
- turn on つける tsukeru
- eat 食べる taberu
- sit 座る suwaru
- turn 回わす mawasu
Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.
Questions about やる
How do you pronounce やる?
やる is romanised as yaru. Say it roughly like "yah-roo" in English. Each Japanese syllable has even weight, so keep the rhythm steady.
Is やる formal or casual?
やる 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 やる written in Japanese?
やる is written using hiragana. Written in hiragana やる, this versatile native verb means to do or play.
Where can I practice Japanese words for free?
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"To play (a sport)" in other languages
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