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StreetTongue

Learn Japanese
as it's spoken on the street.

Standard Japanese (taught in most courses) will get you understood in Tokyo. But Osaka-ben sounds completely different, and using Tokyo Japanese in Osaka can feel odd to locals. StreetTongue teaches the dialect of your specific city.

Available Japanese Cities

Choose your city to see essential phrases, pronunciation guides, cultural context, and neighborhood specific language tips.

Tokyo

Standard Japanese (Hyōjungo)

Tokyo Japanese is the standard broadcast Japanese: clear pitch accent, formal register distinctions, and a politeness system that operates on multiple levels simultaneously.

15 phrases · Japan

Osaka

Kansai-ben (Osaka dialect)

Osaka-ben is warm, funny, and very different from Tokyo Japanese. Osakans are proud of their dialect and their reputation for being the most direct, food obsessed, and comedic city in Japan.

16 phrases · Japan

Why city specific Japanese matters

Most language apps teach "correct" Japanese: grammatically standard, textbook approved, understood everywhere. That's useful. It's also not what you need to sound like you belong somewhere specific.

The vocabulary changes by city. The pronunciation patterns change by region. The slang is completely different. And the cultural register (when to be formal, how to greet people, what's rude and what's warm) is entirely city specific.

StreetTongue is built city-first. Every phrase library, every pronunciation example, every cultural tip is specific to the city you're moving to. Not Japanese in general. Your city's Japanese.

Japanese questions

What is Osaka-ben and how different is it from Tokyo Japanese?
Osaka-ben (Osaka dialect) has different vocabulary, pitch accent patterns, and a distinct rhythm from Tokyo Japanese. Key words like 'arigatou' (thanks) become 'ookini' in Osaka, and the conversational style is warmer and more direct. Osakans are proud of their dialect and using Tokyo Japanese in Osaka can feel overly formal.
Should I learn Tokyo Japanese or Osaka Japanese?
Learn the dialect of the city you're moving to. Tokyo Japanese is standard broadcast Japanese and the most widely taught. Osaka-ben is essential for living in Osaka or western Japan. StreetTongue has guides for both.
Is Japanese difficult to learn for daily conversation in Tokyo?
Conversational survival Japanese for daily Tokyo life is achievable in a few months of focused study. The challenge is not textbook Japanese but street-level phrases: ordering food, asking for directions, reading social situations. StreetTongue focuses on these practical, high-frequency interactions.

Ready to sound like you belong?

One payment. City-specific phrases, pronunciation scoring, and cultural context.

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