Meaning & Usage
✨ Basic Meaning
“The most,” “the best,” “number one,” or “first.”
🎯 Primary Function
To express the superlative degree (the highest or first rank) in comparison to others within a specific scope.
📋 Grammar Structure
一番 + Verb / Adverb / Adjective
一番 + i-adjective
一番 + na-adjective + です/だ
一番 + Negative Verb/Adjective form (e.g., 一番よくない)
🎭 Usage Contexts
Formal Situations
Used naturally, often with polite forms (〜ます/です). E.g.,「A社が一番信頼できます。」(Company A is the most trustworthy.)
Informal Situations
Used very frequently and casually. E.g.,「これ、一番ヤバいね！」(This is the coolest/most intense!)
Written Language
Common in essays, articles, reviews, and advertisements to highlight the best feature or product.
Spoken Language
Highly common in daily conversation, used for comparison, ranking, and expressing opinions.
💡 Common Applications
Expressing Preferences
Used to indicate the strongest preference or favorite item among options.
Example: ラーメンが一番好きです。 (Rāmen ga ichiban suki desu. – I like ramen the most.)
Identifying a Superlative Quality
Used before an adjective or adverb to express the highest degree of a quality (tallest, fastest, most difficult, etc.).
Example: 彼がクラスで一番背が高い。 (Kare ga kurasu de ichiban se ga takai. – He is the tallest in the class.)
Asking for Rankings or Favorites
Frequently used in questions to elicit the superlative answer. Often paired with interrogatives like どれ (dore), どこ (doko), or だれ (dare).
Example: 旅行でどこが一番楽しかったですか。 (Ryokō de doko ga ichiban tanoshikatta desu ka. – Where was the most fun place during your trip?)
Frequency
Extremely High
Difficulty
N5 (Essential Basic Grammar)
Tag:
Example Sentences
Example #1
このケーキが一番おいしいです。
Furigana: このケーキが一番（いちばん）おいしいです。
Romaji: Kono kēki ga ichiban oishii desu.
English: This cake is the most delicious.
Example #2
スポーツの中で、サッカーが一番好きです。
Furigana: スポーツの中（なか）で、サッカーが一番（いちばん）好（す）きです。
Romaji: Supōtsu no naka de, sakkā ga ichiban suki desu.
English: Among sports, soccer is my favorite.
Example #3
日本で一番高い山は富士山です。
Furigana: 日本（にほん）で一番（いちばん）高（たか）い山（やま）は富士山（ふじさん）です。
Romaji: Nihon de ichiban takai yama wa Fuji-san desu.
English: Mount Fuji is the tallest mountain in Japan.
Example #4
私は冬が一番よく寝られます。
Furigana: 私（わたし）は冬（ふゆ）が一番（いちばん）よく寝（ね）られます。
Romaji: Watashi wa fuyu ga ichiban yoku neraremasu.
English: I sleep best in winter.
Example #5
旅行で一番大切なのば、計画です。
Furigana: 旅行（りょこう）で一番（いちばん）大切（たいせつ）なのは、計画（けいかく）です。
Romaji: Ryokō de ichiban taisetsu na no wa, keikaku desu.
English: The most important thing for traveling is planning.
Example #6
一番早く着いた人が勝ちです。
Furigana: 一番（いちばん）早（はや）く着（つ）いた人（ひと）が勝（か）ちです。
Romaji: Ichiban hayaku tsuita hito ga kachi desu.
English: The person who arrived the earliest wins.
Example #7
この店で一番人気があるのはどれですか。
Furigana: この店（みせ）で一番（いちばん）人気（にんき）があるのはどれですか。
Romaji: Kono mise de ichiban ninki ga aru no wa dore desu ka.
English: Which one is the most popular in this store?
Example #8
私の家族の中で、父が一番早く起きます。
Furigana: 私（わたし）の家族（かぞく）の中（なか）で、父（ちち）が一番（いちばん）早（はや）く起（お）きます。
Romaji: Watashi no kazoku no naka de, chichi ga ichiban hayaku okimasu.
English: Among my family, my father wakes up the earliest.
Example #9
健康が一番大事だと思っています。
Furigana: 健康（けんこう）が一番（いちばん）大事（だいじ）だと思（おも）っています。
Romaji: Kenkō ga ichiban daiji da to omotte imasu.
English: I think health is the most important thing.
Example #10
彼女はクラスで一番歌が上手です。
Furigana: 彼女（かのじょ）はクラスで一番（いちばん）歌（うた）が上手（じょうず）です。
Romaji: Kanojo wa kurasu de ichiban uta ga jōzu desu.
English: She is the best singer in the class.
Notes & Nuances
📌 Important Points
Specifying the Scope (〜で / 〜の中で)
To set the context or scope of the comparison (e.g., in Japan, in my class), use the particle 「で」 or 「のなかで」 before the scope noun.
Example: 富士山（ふじさん）は日本（にほん）で一番（いちばん）高（たか）い山（やま）です。
Ichiban as a Noun
While primarily an adverb, 一番 can stand alone as a noun meaning “the first/the best thing” when followed by particles like が or は.
Example: 一番（いちばん）いいのはこれです。 (Ichiban ii no wa kore desu. – The best one is this.)
Modifying Nouns (一番の)
When modifying a noun directly, Ichiban often takes the particle の (一番の Noun), meaning “the most important/primary Noun.”
Example: 一番（いちばん）の目的（もくてき）は、日本語（にほんご）を学（まな）ぶことです。
⚠️ Common Mistakes
❌ この二つのうち、これは一番いいです。 (Kono futatsu no uchi, kore wa ichiban ii desu.)
✅ Use ‘一番’ only when comparing three or more items (or an item against a group).
While ‘一番’ technically means ‘the best,’ some beginners mistakenly use it when only comparing two things. For two items, the simple comparative (AはBより〜です) is more common, though ‘一番’ is still grammatically correct if one is clearly superior to the other.
❌ 一番、田中さんが早く来ました。 (Ichiban, Tanaka-san ga hayaku kimashita.)
✅ Place ‘一番’ immediately before the adjective or verb it modifies.
If misplaced, the meaning can become slightly awkward or ambiguous. It needs to clearly indicate the superlative degree of the following element.
🏛️ Cultural Context
Politeness Level: Neutral. It can be used in both polite (with です/ます) and casual speech.
Social Situations: Crucial for discussions involving ranking, quality assessment, and making recommendations (e.g., ordering food, choosing a gift, travel planning).
Regional Variations: Standard across all regions of Japan. No significant variations in meaning or usage.
🔍 Subtle Differences
一番 (Ichiban) vs. もっと (Motto)
Ichiban is the superlative (the most/best). Motto is the comparative (more).
When to use: Use Ichiban when indicating the absolute maximum degree. Use Motto when indicating an increase in degree, without comparing it to all other options.
一番 (Ichiban) vs. 最高 (Saikō)
Ichiban is a numerical ranking (the highest rank). Saikō means “the greatest,” “supreme,” or “awesome” (often subjective and emotional).
When to use: Use Ichiban for objective rankings (tallest, fastest, most expensive). Use Saikō for strong positive expression of quality (This movie was awesome!).
📝 Conjugation Notes
一番 (ichiban) is an adverb and a noun, so it does not conjugate. It modifies verbs, i-adjectives, and na-adjectives without changing their form.
🔊 Pronunciation Tips
Pronounce the three morae clearly: い-ち-ば-ん (i-chi-ban). The pitch accent is typically flat or high on the second mora (chiban).
🧠 Memory Tips
Break down the kanji: 一 (ichi = one) + 番 (ban = number/order). Therefore, 一番 literally means “number one” or “the first/best.”
Other Grammar
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