How to Say ‘About / around’ in Japanese
くらい
kurai
[koo-rye]
💬 Usage Tip: [くらい] makes it approximate: [二年くらい]. You may also see [ぐらい]; both are common.
🇯🇵 In Japan: Japanese speakers often soften numbers with [くらい] to avoid sounding too exact or rigid.
Phrase Breakdown
くらい
kurai
[koo-rye]
about; around; approximately
Used after numbers/time expressions to soften them: “about ~.” Can also mean “to the extent of.”
二年くらい住んでいます。
I've lived here for about two years.
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