いみとりかるた (Imitori Karuta) 2025

Imitori Karuta is a game where you listen to a meaning and then quickly take the card with the corresponding word. Accurately knowing the meaning of words is a great opportunity for both children and adults. Take turns as the reader and the taker, becoming familiar with various words and their meanings. It's also recommended to play leisurely with a dictionary in hand, as dictionaries become more enjoyable the more you flip through them. Explaining words from their meanings and guessing words from their meanings are quite different experiences, both important for language familiarity.

How to Play: The reader draws one reading card from the deck and slowly reads its explanation aloud for everyone to hear. Other players quickly grab the taking card that matches the explanation on the reading card. Players who successfully take the correct card acquire it. Players who take an incorrect card sit out for that round.

The cards come in four types: 'Beginner,' 'Advanced,' 'Development,' and 'DIY,' to suit players and levels. Beginner and Advanced cards are selected from 7,700 basic words that elementary school students should learn. The reading cards indicate the recommended grade level in the upper right. 'Beginner' cards are chosen from basic words for grades 1-3, including simple words playable by 5-year-olds, with 30 relatively easy words. 'Advanced' cards are selected from basic words for grades 4-6, focusing on 30 slightly more difficult words that even adults might struggle to define precisely. 'Development' cards are chosen from approximately 40,000 words beyond the basic set, focusing on 30 fun words for play, Katakana words, and buzzwords. 'DIY' cards are blank cards, allowing players to create their own important words. 30 blank cards are provided so you can make cards with words significant to you. Try flipping through a dictionary to find words and create your unique karuta set. It will surely be fun to create it together with friends, parents, or grandparents.

—description from the designer