Meaning & Usage
いくつ (ikutsu) does two things: it asks how many objects exist, and it asks how old someone is. Both come up constantly — counting items at a market, asking a child's age at a family gathering, or figuring out how many of something you still need.
Unlike English "how many," which always needs a noun after it ("how many apples?"), いくつ can stand alone when context is clear. A vendor handing you a bag might ask simply いくつ？ — no noun required.
いくつ is a general counter. It doesn't pair with specific counter words like 本 (long objects), 枚 (flat objects), or 台 (machines). When a specific counter is needed, replace いくつ entirely with なん plus that counter — 何本, 何枚, and so on. For everyday counting with no specific counter required, いくつ is the natural choice.
For age, いくつ is a softer alternative to 何歳 (nan-sai). With children it sounds warm and affectionate — a grandparent asking いくつになったの？ feels completely natural. With adults, いくつ works in casual conversation, though some speakers consider it slightly informal. When in doubt, use おいくつですか.
いくつ itself is register-neutral. Politeness comes from the sentence ending. ですか makes it polite; dropping the ending turns it casual. Among close friends, いくつ？ with rising intonation is a complete sentence. Adding the honorific prefix お gives おいくつ — the standard form for asking an adult's age in any formal or semi-formal situation.
Structure & Formation
いくつ is an interrogative word and fits several sentence patterns. The key patterns are in the table below. Getting the particle right and choosing the correct verb will take you a long way.
| Pattern | Usage | Example |
|---|---|---|
| [Noun] は いくつ ありますか | How many [noun] are there? | 部屋はいくつありますか |
| [Noun] を いくつ [Verb]ますか | How many [noun] will/did you [verb]? | りんごをいくつ買いますか |
| いくつ ありますか | How many are there? (context clear) | いくつありますか |
| [Person] は いくつ ですか | How old is [person]? | お子さんはいくつですか |
| おいくつ ですか | How old are you? (polite age question) | おいくつですか |
For existence questions, use ある (ありますか in polite form). For actions on objects — buying, eating, making — the action verb follows いくつ. For age, use です. Particle placement: は or が marks the noun in existence questions; を marks the object in action questions. Do not place が directly after いくつ.
Answers to いくつ use native Japanese number words: ひとつ (one), ふたつ (two), みっつ (three), よっつ (four), いつつ (five), むっつ (six), ななつ (seven), やっつ (eight), ここのつ (nine), とお (ten). These pair naturally with いくつ and appear regularly on the N5 exam.
Example Sentences
Asking About the Quantity of Objects
りんごはいくつありますか。
Ringo wa ikutsu arimasu ka.
How many apples are there?
卵をいくつ買いましたか。
Tamago wo ikutsu kaimashita ka.
How many eggs did you buy?
箱の中にいくつありますか。
Hako no naka ni ikutsu arimasu ka.
How many are there inside the box?
部屋はいくつありますか。
Heya wa ikutsu arimasu ka.
How many rooms are there?
問題はいくつありますか。
Mondai wa ikutsu arimasu ka.
How many problems are there?
Asking About Quantity With Action Verbs
みかんをいくつ食べましたか。
Mikan wo ikutsu tabemashita ka.
How many tangerines did you eat?
クッキーをいくつ作りましたか。
Kukkii wo ikutsu tsukurimashita ka.
How many cookies did you make?
お菓子はいくつ残っていますか。
Okashi wa ikutsu nokotte imasu ka.
How many sweets are left?
いくつ必要ですか。
Ikutsu hitsuyou desu ka.
How many do you need?
Asking About Age
子どもはいくつですか。
Kodomo wa ikutsu desu ka.
How old is the child?
お子さんはいくつですか。
Okosan wa ikutsu desu ka.
How old is your child?
おいくつですか。
Oikutsu desu ka.
How old are you? (polite)
Natural Conversational Use
今日は仕事がいくつありますか。
Kyou wa shigoto ga ikutsu arimasu ka.
How many tasks do you have today?
この机はいくつありますか。
Kono tsukue wa ikutsu arimasu ka.
How many desks are there?
荷物はいくつですか。
Nimotsu wa ikutsu desu ka.
How many pieces of luggage are there?
Common Mistakes
Mistake 1: Combining いくつ With a Specific Counter Word
❌ りんごはいくつ個ありますか。
✅ りんごはいくつありますか。 or りんごは何個ありますか。
いくつ is already a general quantity question — it doesn't stack with counter words like 個, 本, or 枚. When you need a specific counter, replace いくつ entirely with なん plus that counter. To ask "how many flat items," say 何枚ありますか, not いくつ枚ありますか. Pick one: いくつ for general counting, なん + counter for specific counting.
Mistake 2: Using いくつ to Count People
❌ クラスにいくつの学生がいますか。
✅ クラスに何人の学生がいますか。
Counting people always requires 人 (nin/hito), so "how many people" is 何人 — never いくつ. The same logic applies to animals: 何匹 for small ones, 何頭 for large ones. いくつ counts inanimate objects, not living beings.
Mistake 3: Using いくつ Too Casually When Asking an Adult's Age
❌ (In a formal context) いくつですか。
✅ おいくつですか。 or お年はおいくつですか。
いくつですか is fine with friends or children. With an adult in a formal or professional setting, it sounds blunt. Add お to get おいくつですか — the minimal fix that makes it polite. In more formal situations, お年はおいくつですか is the safer choice.
Mistake 4: Forgetting That いくつ Can Mean "How Old"
❌ (A person is asked いくつですか and answers with a count of nearby objects instead of their age.)
✅ Recognize from context: when いくつですか is directed at a person with no objects under discussion, it means "How old are you?"
Many learners first see いくつ in counting exercises and miss that it doubles as an age question. When no objects are being discussed and the question is aimed at a person, いくつですか almost always means "How old are you?" Build the habit of checking context first: objects or a person?
Mistake 5: Wrong Particle Use Around いくつ
❌ りんごをいくつがありますか。
✅ りんごはいくつありますか。 or りんごがいくつありますか。
With the existence verb ある, は or が belongs on the noun — not after いくつ. The particle を marks the object of action verbs only (eating, buying, making). Putting が after いくつ is a common slip; いくつ modifies the predicate and takes no particle of its own. Particles in Japanese demand attention, and いくつ questions give you useful practice with the basics.
Cultural Notes
At a market, a vendor handing you a bag might ask いくつにしますか？ ("How many would you like?"). No preamble, no setup — just the essential question.
Age carries real social weight in Japan. It influences language choices (keigo), group dynamics, and expectations between people. Asking a child いくつ？ reads as warm and affectionate — the kind of thing a relative says at a birthday, not a bureaucrat filling out a form. The same question to an adult shifts in tone depending on phrasing: いくつですか is casual; おいくつですか is polite. The choice signals not just register, but closeness.
いくつになりましたか — literally "how many have you become?" — treats age as something accumulated over time. You'll hear it at birthday parties and around New Year. Japan historically used 数え年 (kazoe-doshi), a system where everyone gained a year on January 1st rather than their birthday. That system is now obsolete, but communal celebration of age milestones is still woven into Japanese social life.
In children's education, いくつ shows up in counting songs and classroom activities. Encountering both meanings early — counting objects and asking ages — is part of why native speakers move between the two without a second thought.
Related Grammar Points
- なぜ／どうして — How to Ask 'Why' in Japanese (Grammar N5)
- どこ — Where (Location Question Word) (Grammar N5)
- だれ — Who (Interrogative Pronoun for People) (Grammar N5)
- いつ — When: Complete Guide to Asking About Time in Japanese (Grammar N5)
- よ — Emphasis and Assertion (Grammar N5)
- How to Use いくら (Ikura): Asking About Price in Japanese (Grammar N5)
JLPT Tips
In the listening section, short dialogues will include いくつ questions. The key is context: are objects being counted, or is someone's age being asked? The surrounding conversation tells you — but the audio won't stop, so train yourself to catch いくつ quickly and read the situation in real time.
In the grammar and vocabulary section, expect questions on particle use or distinguishing いくつ from similar words. Core rule: いくつ = general objects and casual age; 何人 = people; 何歳 = age (formal/explicit); なん + counter = objects needing a specific counter.
When you spot いくつ in an exam question, ask yourself two things: What is being counted? and Is this about quantity or age? If people are being counted in a non-age context, いくつ is wrong — 何人 is the answer. If objects are being counted without a specific counter, いくつ is almost certainly correct.
いくつ is written entirely in hiragana with no kanji form — easy to spot in reading passages. In listening, watch out: いく also begins 行く ("to go"), so wait for the full word before deciding. When context seems ambiguous, the surrounding sentence will resolve it.