Kotomora: Japanese Dictionary

Kotomora

About this app

Kotomora is a Japanese dictionary built for learners who want more than quick definitions.

Search in English, romaji, kana, or kanji, or draw a character by hand when you don't know its reading. Entries go well beyond a one-line gloss: readings with furigana, pitch accent, audio, example sentences, conjugations, frequency, JLPT level, related words, related kanji, and written-form notes.

Paste a Japanese sentence, or share one from any app, and the sentence analyzer breaks it down word by word, with readings, meanings, and dictionary forms.

Kotomora includes a complete grammar reference: 710 grammar points from JLPT N5 to N1, from essentials like は and ている to advanced forms like べく and とはいえ. Each page says what a form means, how to build it, and when to use it, with example sentences you can listen to, and ends with practice to check yourself. 48 comparisons put forms that say nearly the same thing side by side, like the ways to say "because," or respectful and humble keigo.

Translation guides explain how English words and phrases map to natural Japanese. Learn the difference between ありがとう, ありがとうございます, and すみません, or how words like "run," "wear," "please," and "but" change with context.

Browse words by JLPT level, part of speech, and theme, or start from curated collections: onomatopoeia, four-character idioms, proverbs, idioms, slang, keigo, counters, and Japanese-made English (wasei-eigo).

Features:

• Search in English, romaji, kana, or kanji
• Handwriting input for characters you can't type
• Audio for words and example sentences, with a male or female voice and playback down to half speed
• Pitch accent, conjugations, frequency, and JLPT level
• Related words: synonyms, easily confused words, word families, and transitive/intransitive pairs
• Usage patterns and expressions that show how words combine in real sentences
• Sentence analyzer with word-by-word readings and meanings
• Complete grammar reference: 710 points and 48 comparisons across JLPT N5–N1, with practice on every page
• Translation guides for nuance and natural usage
• Kanji meanings, readings, components, similar kanji, and stroke order
• Browse by JLPT, part of speech, theme, and curated collections
• Customize word, kanji, and grammar pages: reorder sections and choose what starts open; hide sections on word and kanji pages; turn furigana on or off
• Save entries and add personal notes for offline review, and back them up to a file
• On tablets, search results sit beside the entry you're reading

Kotomora is for learners who want to understand how Japanese is actually used.

Ratings and reviews

I wasn't sure as the app only has a few thousand downloads but I will say, after having tried most of the other Japanese dictionary apps this one is excellent. It has a built in frequency list, also if I look up a word in English that may have several interpretations it will try to group words that match the meaning and explain the most common ones - this is a genuine game changer! It even includes usage patterns!! Well done to the dev and thank you very much for creating this splendid tool 😊

Okay, so I only just installed this app today, but I am completely surprised at how useful it is! I've been learning Japanese for 15 years, and so I'm reluctant to use new resources as I know so many good ones. Nevertheless, I highly recommend this one. What a treasure trove of information!

this has been one of the greatest resources for learning Japanese. you can literally use it as you would use a physical dictionary: following words to get deeper understanding. the app keeps all that deep navigation in it's history, so pressing the back button gets you back to where you were right before. it's simple functionality but so many apps do it wrong. it also has pronunciation for every word and sentences. the sentences can be quite complex as well. overall amazed

What’s new

• Improved, more relevant search results that now include grammar points, example sentences, and Japanese names.
• You can now search kanji by radicals and components, in addition to our existing handwriting search.
• Search example sentences, and keep them to your JLPT level, shortest or longest first.
• Word pages link to all their example sentences.
• Sentence analysis links grammar to its grammar page, opens names, and shows English translations for the app's own example sentences.