How to Read 々 in Japanese Words
The kanji repetition mark tells you that the previous character is repeated. Its pronunciation comes from the complete word, so copying the first sound mechanically can give the wrong reading. Look up the word with its reading and meaning.
Inku editorial team · Published · 4 min read
The mark 々 is called an 踊り字 (おどりじ, odoriji, "repetition sign"). That names its job, not a fixed sound within a word. It is an instruction to repeat the preceding kanji. It does not have one fixed pronunciation of its own. Read the complete word, including any sound change, and learn that word's meaning. The same practical rule helps when a dictionary writes out both kanji instead of showing the mark.
Repeat the character
An iteration mark is a repetition sign. In ordinary Japanese words, the mark stands in the position of a repeated kanji. Unicode identifies it as the ideographic iteration mark. That name describes its role; it does not tell you a syllable to pronounce.
For example, 人々 (ひとびと, hitobito, "people") contains a repeated person character. The second part is bito in this word. Reading hito twice without checking would miss the word's usual pronunciation.
The dictionary publisher Taishukan uses that example in its explanation of how to read the repetition mark. Its point is useful for learners: the reading changes with the word. There is no single sound you can attach to the mark everywhere.
Learn the whole word
Another common example is 時々 (ときどき, tokidoki, "sometimes"). Shogakukan's Digital Daijisen entry gives that reading and the everyday adverbial meaning. Learn the expression together rather than store a rule that every repeated character must change in the same way.
There are two separate questions. Which character is repeated? What is the checked reading of the resulting word? The mark answers the first. A word entry or a reliable reading guide answers the second.
This is also why a repetition sign is not another component to add to a kanji. The kanji radicals guide deals with components inside characters. Here, the sign occupies the place of a character in a word.
Dictionary spellings can look different
A dictionary may show both kanji in its written-form heading. For example, 人人 (ひとびと, hitobito, "people") can appear as the expanded spelling of the first example. That does not create a second word with a different meaning.
The JapanKnowledge explanation of these dictionary headings describes the distinction between an expanded heading and the familiar spelling in ordinary text.
If a lookup with the mark does not find a useful result, check the kana reading or expand the repeated kanji. Then compare the entire entry with the word you encountered. A matching single kanji is not enough.
Keep the original spelling in your note as well as the checked reading. That way, the next encounter looks familiar even if the dictionary chose a different display form.
Related kana signs
Kana have their own repetition signs too. The Unicode hiragana chart identifies both ordinary and voiced repetition marks. This article's word examples focus on the kanji sign; a kana sign requires checking the kana and complete expression around it.
You do not need a large collection of older repetition signs for a first modern reader. When one appears, identify the script, keep the surrounding word, and check the reading in a source that covers that text.
Do not substitute an English-style ditto mark. Unicode lists the ditto and kanji iteration marks separately. Two symbols can both suggest repetition while serving different written jobs.
One lookup routine
- Copy the complete word and a little surrounding text.
- Identify whether the repeated item is a kanji or kana.
- Check the whole-word reading. Expand the repeated character or search the kana if necessary.
- Keep the spelling, reading and one meaning that fits the passage.
- Return to the passage and read the expression as one word.
If the difficult part is choosing a kanji reading rather than identifying the sign, the guide to on'yomi and kun'yomi covers that separate question.
A small review card
For practice, choose one checked word from this article. Hide its reading, read it aloud, then reveal the reading and meaning together. If you get it wrong, keep the complete word as the item to revisit.
For the next step, browse Japanese vocabulary in Inku's public library. Keep a complete checked word, reading and meaning together when you make a note.
Sources
- Taishukan: reading the kanji repetition mark — The kanji repetition mark has no fixed reading; the word for people demonstrates a voiced second component. The article does not teach a universal sound-change rule. (checked 2026-10-17)
- JapanKnowledge: repetition marks in dictionary headings — Dictionary headings may expand a repeated kanji even where normal text uses a repetition mark. The expanded heading does not identify a different word. (checked 2026-10-17)
- Shogakukan Digital Daijisen via Kotobank: sometimes — Reading and everyday adverbial meaning of the Japanese word for sometimes. No pitch claim is taken from the entry. (checked 2026-10-17)
- Unicode: CJK Symbols and Punctuation — Identity of Japanese punctuation, kanji iteration and ditto marks. The last two are different signs. (checked 2026-10-17)
- Unicode: Hiragana chart — Character identities; reference glyph shapes are not prescriptive and actual fonts vary. Hiragana iteration symbols are separately named. (checked 2026-10-17)
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