To learn Japanese with an AI tutor, give it three things every time: your level (say, JLPT N5), a job (explain, quiz, correct or role-play) and a format (Japanese, then the hiragana reading, then English). Make it test you, not just explain, and check new words and readings in a dictionary or textbook before you memorise them. The 15 prompts below work in ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude or any AI chat, each with an example of a good answer.
An AI tutor does what used to need a patient human: it re-explains a point, invents fresh examples and plays the waiter while you practise ordering. But it is not a syllabus and not always right, so pair it with a course or textbook.
How do you write a prompt that gets good Japanese back?
A good 先生 (せんせい, sensei, teacher) adapts to the student; an AI only adapts if you tell it how. Every prompt here has four parts:
Level
“I’m studying for JLPT N5.”
Job
“Quiz me.” “Correct this.”
Format
“Japanese, reading, English.”
Check
“Tell me if you’re unsure.”
01Set the ground rules (paste this first)
Prompt
You are my Japanese tutor. I’m studying for JLPT N5 and can read hiragana and katakana. For this whole chat, use only N5 grammar and vocabulary, write every Japanese sentence as Japanese, hiragana reading, then English, keep answers under 120 words, and tell me when you’re not sure.
Good answer
“Got it. For example: 今日は暑いですね。 (きょうは あついですね) It’s hot today, isn’t it? What shall we start with?”
Paste it again whenever the answers drift.
Which prompts help you understand grammar?
02Explain a grammar point at your level
Prompt
Explain 〜たいです at JLPT N5 level in under 100 words: how it attaches to a verb, 2 examples, and the most common beginner mistake.
Good answer
“〜たい means ‘want to’: drop ます and add たいです, so 行きます (いきます) becomes 行きたいです. It changes like an い-adjective (negative: 〜たくないです).”
- 日本に行きたいです。 (にほんに いきたいです) I want to go to Japan.
- 今日は何もしたくないです。 (きょうは なにも したくないです) I don’t want to do anything today.
“Common mistake: 食べるたい instead of 食べたい (たべたい).”
Check it against LenGaki’s page for 〜たい.
03Compare は and が
Prompt
Explain は vs が for a JLPT N5 learner: one statement, one question and answer, and a rule of thumb, in under 120 words.
Good answer
“は (read wa) marks the topic; the new information follows it. が (ga) puts the focus on the subject, so it answers ‘who?’ and ‘what?’.”
- 田中さんは先生です。 (たなかさんは せんせいです) Mr Tanaka is a teacher.
- だれが先生ですか。 (だれが せんせいですか) Who is the teacher? — 田中さんが先生です。 (たなかさんが せんせいです) Mr Tanaka is.
“Rule of thumb: a question word as the subject, like だれ (who) or 何 (なに, what), takes が, never は.”
More pairs: は vs が, solved.
04Ask about two look-alike words
Prompt
What’s the difference between 知っています and わかります? One example each, then the most common beginner mistake.
Good answer
“知っています (しっています) is knowing a fact or a person; わかります is understanding.”
- 電話番号を知っていますか。 (でんわばんごうを しっていますか) Do you know the phone number?
- 日本語がわかりますか。 (にほんごが わかりますか) Do you understand Japanese?
“Mistake: ‘I don’t know’ is 知りません (しりません), not 知っていません.”
05Break down a sentence you’re reading
Prompt
Break this down word by word with readings, meanings and grammar, then translate it: 毎朝コーヒーを飲んでから会社に行きます。
Good answer
- 毎朝 (まいあさ) every morning · コーヒーを coffee + object marker を
- 飲んでから (のんでから) after drinking: the て-form of 飲む (のむ, drink) + から
- 会社に行きます (かいしゃに いきます) go to work
“Every morning I drink coffee and then go to work.”
The pattern: 〜てから.
On lengaki.com you don’t need to paste anything: highlight any text and tap “Explain with Lena” to ask LenGaki’s AI tutor about it.
Try Lena06Get example sentences for a word
Prompt
Give me 5 JLPT N5 example sentences with 好き (すき), from easy to slightly harder, each in a different situation.
Good answer
- ねこが好きです。 (ねこが すきです) I like cats.
- 好きな食べ物はラーメンです。 (すきな たべものは ラーメンです) My favourite food is ramen.
“…and a note: the thing you like takes が, not を.”
Same rule: 好き and 嫌い (きらい, dislike).
Which prompts make you actually use Japanese?
Understanding isn’t using. These five make you produce Japanese.
07Quiz me, one question at a time
Prompt
Quiz me on 10 JLPT N5 verbs: show the English, I type the ます-form. One question at a time, and wait for my answer. If I’m wrong, give the answer with its reading. At the end, list what I missed.
Good answer
- “Question 1: to drink.”
- You: のみます
- “Correct: 飲みます (のみます). Question 2: to wait.”
Without “one at a time”, you often get all ten at once, answers included.
08Correct my sentence and explain
Prompt
Correct this, changing only what’s wrong, and explain each change in one line: きのう、学校で行きます。
Good answer
“きのう、学校に行きました。 (きのう、がっこうに いきました) I went to school yesterday.”
- で → に: with 行く (いく, go), the destination takes に or へ; で marks where an action happens.
- 行きます → 行きました: きのう (yesterday) needs the past tense.
“Only what’s wrong” stops it rewriting your sentence into Japanese you couldn’t write.
09Drill your weak spot
Prompt
I mix up に and で. Give me 6 fill-in-the-blank sentences mixing both, one at a time, with a one-line rule after each answer.
Good answer
- “へや＿ねこが います。 There’s a cat in the room.”
- You: に
- “Right: に marks where something is.”
10Answer questions about your day
Prompt
Ask me 5 simple questions about my day in Japanese, one at a time. Correct each answer and show one more natural way to say it.
Good answer
- “毎朝、何時に起きますか。 (まいあさ、なんじに おきますか) What time do you get up every morning?”
- You: 七時に起きます。 (しちじに おきます) I get up at seven.
- “Good. Also natural: 七時ごろ起きます。 (しちじごろ おきます) I get up around seven.”
11Role-play ordering food
Prompt
Role-play: you’re a waiter in a small Tokyo restaurant and I’m a customer. Simple polite Japanese, one line at a time with reading and English. Wait for my reply, and save corrections for the end.
Good answer
- Waiter: いらっしゃいませ。何名様ですか。 (いらっしゃいませ。なんめいさまですか) Welcome. How many people?
- You: 一人です。 (ひとりです) Just me.
- You, later: すみません、ラーメンを一つください。 (すみません、ラーメンを ひとつ ください) Excuse me, one ramen, please.
Staff really say 何名様ですか, so it belongs even at N5, translated. More: ordering food in Japan.
Which prompts help with kanji and vocabulary?
12Break a kanji into parts
Prompt
Break 休 into its parts with their meanings, then give its on’yomi and kun’yomi, a common word for each, and a memory hook.
Good answer
“休 (rest) = 亻 (person, the form 人 (ひと) takes on the left) + 木 (き, tree): a person resting against a tree.”
- On’yomi キュウ (kyū): 休日 (きゅうじつ) holiday
- Kun’yomi やす(む): 休む (やすむ) to rest
Check it on LenGaki’s page for 休.
13Make a mini story with N5 words
Prompt
Write a 5-sentence story in JLPT N5 Japanese using 天気 (てんき), 公園 (こうえん) and 友達 (ともだち), then ask me 2 questions about it and wait for my answers.
Good answer
- 土曜日は天気がよかったです。 (どようびは てんきが よかったです) The weather was nice on Saturday.
- 友達と公園へ行きました。 (ともだちと こうえんへ いきました) I went to the park with a friend.
- Q1: だれと公園へ行きましたか。 (だれと こうえんへ いきましたか) Who did the writer go with?
14Check the level of an answer
Prompt
Is everything in this sentence JLPT N5? If not, say what’s above N5 and give an N5 version: 宿題を忘れてしまいました。
Good answer
“〜てしまいました is N4: it adds regret (‘I went and forgot’). At N5: 宿題を忘れました。 (しゅくだいを わすれました) I forgot my homework.”
The cure for level creep, pitfall 3 below.
15Review the session
Prompt
Review this chat: list my mistakes with corrections and one-line rules, then make flashcards for the 5 most useful new words: word | reading | meaning | example.
Good answer
- 学校で行きます → 学校に行きます: a destination takes に or へ.
- 天気 | てんき | weather | 今日はいい天気ですね。 (きょうは いい てんきですね) Nice weather today.
The mistake list is tomorrow’s review.
What goes wrong with AI tutors, and how do you guard against it?
AI tutors make mistakes, and the wrong answers sound as sure as the right ones:
| Pitfall | What it looks like | The guard |
|---|---|---|
| Confident mistakes | An invented rule or word, a wrong JLPT level, a made-up kanji history | Ask it to flag doubts; check new rules in your textbook and new words in a dictionary |
| Wrong readings | Exceptions slip: 一本 (one long thing) is いっぽん, 三本 is さんぼん, 今日 (today) is きょう | Ask for the hiragana reading of every sentence; look up any you don’t know |
| Level creep | N4 grammar such as 〜なければなりません (must), or untranslated shop politeness like ご注文はお決まりですか (ごちゅうもんは おきまりですか, ready to order?) | State your level first, repeat it when answers drift, and use prompt 14 |
| Rewriting, not correcting | A polished sentence you couldn’t have written, with nothing explained | “Change only what’s wrong and explain each change.” |
| Reading, not practising | Clear explanations you agree with, then forget | End with “Now quiz me on it, one question at a time.” |
Level labels are approximate anyway: the JLPT publishes no official word or kanji lists for the current test, so every “N5 list”, an AI’s included, is an estimate. Hold the AI to one list (LenGaki’s N5 material has 726 words, 124 kanji and 82 grammar points), and confirm anything new once outside the AI: a dictionary, your textbook, LenGaki’s grammar library, or a kanji page such as 日 (にち, ひ: sun, day).
Which AI is best for learning Japanese?
The prompt matters more than the brand: ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and other big assistants can all run these prompts, and all can make the mistakes above. What differs is where each fits:
| What you need | General assistant (ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude…) | Lena on LenGaki |
|---|---|---|
| Best at | Long conversations and role-plays on any topic | Questions while you study: answers, grammar, examples |
| A sentence you’re reading | Paste it into the chat | Highlight it on lengaki.com and tap “Explain with Lena” |
| New words | Copy them into your own flashcards | Vocab cards you can hear and save |
| Phone and computer | Each assistant’s own apps | Chats sync between lengaki.com and the Android app |
| Cost | Free and paid plans, set by each provider | 3 messages a day with a free account; unlimited with Pro (a small monthly price) |
Two jobs need other tools: pronunciation (LenGaki’s speaking practice scores it, in Chrome on desktop and Android) and long-term memory (flashcards, or Anki for your own spaced-repetition decks). More in the best AI tools to learn Japanese and can ChatGPT help you learn Japanese?
How does Lena, LenGaki’s AI tutor, fit in?
LenGaki (lengaki.com) is a Japanese learning website and Android app that takes you from your first hiragana to the JLPT, with a guided roadmap, kana, kanji, vocabulary, grammar, flashcards, quizzes, speaking practice, JLPT mock exams and an AI tutor called Lena. At lengaki.com/lena she answers questions, explains grammar and gives examples and vocab cards you can hear and save. Anywhere on the site, you can also highlight text and tap “Explain with Lena”.
- Free and Pro. 3 messages a day with a free account; unlimited with Pro, a small monthly price, cancel anytime.
- Synced. Lena chats sync between the website and the LenGaki Android app. There’s no iOS app; on an iPhone, use the website.
- Still an AI. Give your level, ask for readings, check anything new.
On the free allowance, pack it all into one message: “I’m N5. Explain 〜てから with 3 examples, with hiragana readings and English.”
How do you fit an AI tutor into a study routine?
Keep the AI in the middle of a session: 5 minutes on flashcards, 10 learning one new thing from your course (a textbook section, roadmap lesson or grammar page), 7 working it with prompts 2, 6, 7, 9 or 11, and 3 on prompt 15. Every month or so, measure yourself with something no AI wrote: a timed JLPT mock exam (LenGaki’s N5 sets 1 and 2 are free, all three papers including listening) or the official sample questions on the JLPT website.
Frequently asked questions
Can an AI tutor teach you Japanese?
It can teach a lot: an AI tutor explains grammar, writes examples, quizzes you and corrects your sentences. Use it with a course or textbook, and check new words and readings in a dictionary, because AI tutors make confident mistakes.
What is the best AI to learn Japanese?
There’s no single best one: ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and other major assistants can all run good prompts, and the prompt matters more than the brand. LenGaki’s AI tutor, Lena, works inside the site: highlight any text and tap “Explain with Lena”.
What are good ChatGPT prompts for learning Japanese?
Good prompts state your JLPT level, ask for the hiragana reading and English with every sentence, and give the AI a job, like quizzing you one question at a time or correcting your sentence and explaining each change.
How do I stop an AI tutor from teaching me wrong Japanese?
Keep it at your level, ask for readings on every sentence and tell it to say when it isn’t sure. Then confirm new rules, words and readings in a dictionary or textbook before you memorise them.
Is Lena, LenGaki’s AI tutor, free?
Yes, up to a limit: a free LenGaki account includes 3 Lena messages a day, and Pro, a small monthly subscription, makes them unlimited. Lena chats sync between lengaki.com and the LenGaki Android app.
Should I ask an AI tutor for romaji?
Only until you can read hiragana and katakana. After that, ask for hiragana readings, so every answer is also reading practice.
