How To Play Shiritori With ChatGPT

Jasper Shapiro

Looking for a fun way to improve your Japanese vocabulary? Shiritori is a game you can play to put your vocabulary knowledge to the test.

You’d normally play it with other people. But if you don’t know anyone who’s studying Japanese, you can play with ChatGPT.

In this article, we’ll dive into the steps to take to start playing Shiritori with ChatGPT.

Shiritori Rules

Students playing shiritori.

  • Pick someone to go first. That person will say a word in Japanese.
  • The last letter of the word has to be the first letter of the next word someone says.
    • Example: りんご → ゴリラ ✅
  • Repeat step 2 as many times as you want.
  • IMPORTANT RULE: You can’t choose a word that ends with ん because there’s no word in Japanese that starts with ん. Therefore, if you play a word that ends in ん, the game is over and you lose.
    • Example: ゴリラ → ラーメン ❌

Shiritori With ChatGPT

Person using ChatGPT on laptop.

To play Shiritori with ChatGPT, you need to ensure ChatGPT understands the rules. You can use the prompts below so that ChatGPT knows how to play with you. Keep in mind that ChatGPT might still make mistakes even after you send these instructions.

Japanese Prompt:

尻取りを一緒にしませんか？ルールは以下の通りです：

1) 辞書に載っている言葉のみ使用できます。辞書に載っていない言葉を出したら、負けです。

2) 「ん」または「ン」で終わる言葉を出したら、その場で負けとなります。ただし、最後の音が「ん」ではなく、それに続く文字で終わっている場合（例：「ラウンド」）、ルール違反にはなりません。

3) そちらからスタートし、交互に言葉を出します。両者のターンが終わると1ラウンドが終了します。

3ラウンドまで行い、もし10ラウンド終了後に私が負けていなければ、私の勝ちとなります。 いかがでしょうか？

English Prompt:

Let’s play the Japanese game of 尻取り! Let’s play with the following rules:

1. Only words found in the dictionary are allowed. If either player uses a word that is not in the dictionary, the game ends and that player loses.

2. If either player uses a word ends in ん or ン, the game ends and that player loses. Of course, if a word contains ん or ン but ends with a different character, that is acceptable. For example, the words ラウンド and ランキング are fine.

3. We’ll start with you and take turns. When we have both had a turn, that will count as one round. When we complete 10 rounds, if I have not lost, it will be my win.

Also, because I’m using this game to practice my vocabulary, each time you play a word, please show it as it is typically written, then in kana if the word contains kanji, and then include an English translation. For example, if you played the word 猫, you would show it as 猫（ねこ）- cat. How does that sound?

Conclusion

Playing Shiritori with ChatGPT is a great activity for improving your Japanese vocabulary and staying motivated, as it helps keep learning fun.

With AI becoming a major tool in today’s world, you can use AI to help you with not only Shiritori but also other parts of your studies.

From vocabulary to grammar, AI tools like ChatGPT can help complement your Japanese learning.