How to play Shiritori: A Japanese word game!
Shiritori or しりとり is a traditional Japanese word game that is popular among young children in Japan. The game requires no materials so it’s a great way to pass the time when there’s nothing else to do. For Japanese learners, it’s effective for learning and increasing your vocabulary.
What does Shiritori mean?
Shiritori is made up of the words shiri (butt) and tori (to take). This game involves taking the ends of words and creating new words that start with the end word.
How to play:
Setup:
To play this game you need at least 2 players. The starting word can be anything that doesn’t end in ん. Some people will choose to use しりとり (Shiritori) as the starting word.
Gameplay:
Players take turns saying a word that starts with the end (hiragana character) of the previous word. Players continue until someone runs out of words or says a word that ends with ん.
Here’s an example of what the game can look like with players A and B:
A: しりとり (shiritori) – starting word
B: りす (risu)
A: すいか (suika)
B: かめ (kame)
A: めろん (meron) – Player A loses because they said a word with ん
Rules:
- If you say a word that ends with ん , you lose. This is because there are no words that start with ん in Japanese.
- Words cannot be used twice
- Combining words is not allowed: For example: 茶色いくま (chairoi kuma) is not allowed.
- Shiritori can also have many other detailed “local” rules. For example, you can decide if you want to allow people’s names, place names, movie names, book names etc…
- If a word ends in a small hiragana like ゃゅょ, you have to decide what rule to use. You can either take the small hiragana or the combination as the start of the new word. For example, with きんぎょ (kingyo), the next word can be よる(yoru) or ぎょうしゃ (gyousha).
How to win:
If the other players run out of words or says a word with ん, the remaining player wins.
Tips for Shiritori:
As you play shiritori you may notice that there are very few Japanese words that start with る. In order to win shiritori, you’ll have to learn more foreign origin words that start with る like ルビー (rubii) or ルール (ruuru). Another tip is to choose words that end in る so your opponent will have trouble finding words that start with it.
How shiritori can improve your Japanese!
Shiritori is extremely beneficial for improving your Japanese. This is because you’re forced to remember and say the Japanese vocabulary that you know. When you lose shiritori, you should look up which words start with the hiragana that you were stuck on. This will help you learn new words. Also, if you’re playing with someone else and you hear a word you’ve never heard of, make sure to ask what it means!
Variations of Shiritori:
If you want to spice up shiritori, there are also variations that you can play! Here are some ideas:
Categories:
Categories can make shiritori harder since there are more restrictions. With this version, you can only say words that belong to a specific category. Some ideas could be animals, food, etc…
Last two hiragana:
Another shiritori variation is to use the last two hiragana. For example, かきごうり → うりもの. With this one, you can’t say a word with a second to last letter of ん.
Double Shiritori:
This is a variation where each player does two shiritori words each.
For example:
Player 1: しりとり and りす
Player 2:すし and しろ
Rhythm Shiritori:
In rhythm shiritori, the players are forced to react and think quickly. After each word, the other players clap twice in rhythm. If someone can’t think of a word quick enough, they lose.
For example:
Player 1: しりとり – clap – clap
Player 2: りす – clap – clap
Where can you play shiritori?
The best way to play shiritori is with other people, but there are also some apps and websites where you can play shiritori by yourself!
Shiritori.org
At this website you can choose your level, and the word that they generate includes a definition.
http://www.shiritori.org
Shiritori Battle:
This is a website created in Japanese. There are no definitions and it has some complicated rules. This is a game where you “battle” and if you choose a word that’s in a category that goes well against the word you’re given, you deal damage. Make sure to click そのほか so you can see the different ways that the categories interact with each other. This is a slightly different version of shiritori that you can try out.
http://siritori-battle.net
I hope that this article can help you discover a new and fun way to improve your Japanese! If you’re interested in other Japanese language blog content, be sure to check out my other articles like 24 Japanese Animal Sounds or Onomatopoeia! or Japanese Prepositions: Describe locations!
~ Tanuki