Great For Japanese Learners! Using MATCHA’s Easy Japanese Website

How to Use MATCHA’s Easy Japanese Website - for Language Learners

MATCHA is an inbound tourism media company that publishes articles about Japan in ten different languages. The topics range from sightseeing, culture, etiquette, and helpful information for all your travel-planning needs in Japan.

Information on MATCHA is currently available in Japanese, English, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, Thai, Korean, Indonesian, Vietnamese, Spanish, and easy Japanese.

What is easy Japanese? This level consists of simplified words and phrases and is an ideal language to read in for those learning. You may have seen this type of writing in news reports or newspaper articles in other languages.

MATCHA’s Easy Japanese website features articles on our Japanese website made into simplified Japanese. The grammar and vocabulary is suitable for readers learning the Japanese-Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) N4 Level.

Using MATCHA in Easy Japanese

• 1. Try Reading an Article
• 1-1. Why Are There Text Links in the Articles?
• 1-2. Can the Same Article Be Read in a Different Language?
• 2. Download Audio Articles Ideal for Listening Practice
• 3. Original Articles Are Available in Easy Japanese

Try Reading an Article

URL: https://matcha-jp.com/easy/9532

Let’s try reading an article! The Japanese kanji characters have furigana written above, while katakana is displayed with their English equivalents. Vocabulary that may be difficult for N4 level learners are annotated in English.

Why Are There Text Links in the Articles?

Some characters in the text will be highlighted in blue. When clicked, this blue text will take readers to a separate page displaying a related article or an explanation of the word.

Example: Edo Period, Tokyo

Can the Same Article Be Read in a Different Language?

Scroll to the very bottom of the page to find the language tab (“kotoba” in Japanese). Click on the drop-down menu labeled "Easy Japanese" to bring up a list of languages the article has been translated into. Then, select your desired language from the menu.

Another quick method is to substitute the "easy" written in the URL with the initial assigned to each language's website. However, articles that are awaiting translation will be redirected to an error page.

Language Homepage URLs

After reading an article in easy Japanese, check the meaning of the text by re-reading it in your own language! Please note that the context may change or additional information may be added depending on the translation.

Download Audio Articles Ideal for Listening Practice

Picture from Reading Recordings Now Available! Downloadable Easy Japanese Audio Files

Audio recordings of popular articles being read in Easy Japanese are now available to download. This is a great option for those wanting to hear native, natural Japanese for study for school or to better adjust to everyday situations.

Each article reading costs 100 yen, and some can be streamed for free. For details, see this article in Easy Japanese.

Visit the site below to see which article recordings are available.

MATCHA Audio - Easy Japanese: https://matcha-jp.stores.jp/

Original Articles Are Available in Easy Japanese

Picture from What Would You Do? How To Eat Miso Soup

Nearly all the articles on our Easy Japanese website are translated from our regular Japanese articles. However, manga (comics) articles are exclusively created for the Easy Japanese website.

These articles introduce Japanese language learners to various subjects through manga! Learn about Japanese words that easily confuse learners, unique customs you'll encounter while living or sightseeing in Japan, and much more.

Have fun learning Japanese while reading about the country’s customs in comic form!