Pros
- Beginners who need English or romaji search
- Quick lookups of words, kanji, and example sentences
- Learners who do not want a browser extension yet
Cons
- You need hover lookup inside a page
- You want a Japanese-only monolingual workflow
- Offline mobile use is required
Jisho is a free Japanese-English dictionary. awesome-japanese calls it a gold-standard web dictionary, which matches how most beginners actually use it: type an English gloss, romaji, or a pasted word and read the result.
What job it does
It answers “what does this word mean?” and “how do I write this kanji?” without an account. Stroke diagrams, parts of speech, and example sentences make it usable on day one.
Limits
Jisho does not teach grammar, schedule reviews, or sit on top of a novel. For in-page reading, Yomitan is the stronger lookup layer. For production, you still need example sentences in context and a place to use the word.
How to test it
Look up three words from a textbook page and one unknown kanji by radical or drawing if available. If the entries are clear enough to return to study, it is doing the job.
If the missing job is phone, offline, hover, pitch, or subtitle lookup, use the Japanese dictionary shortlist before adding another dictionary.
Sources checked
- Jisho official site official product · Official product page used for the public description, platform, and current offering.