Common Japanese Mistake: わかる (wakaru) vs しる (shiru) — Understanding vs Knowing

2026年4月23日2026年4月27日

TOC

Two Words That Both Translate as “Know”

English “know” covers two different concepts that Japanese splits into two verbs: わかる (wakaru) and しる (shiru). Using the wrong one is a very common intermediate mistake that native speakers notice immediately.

The Core Difference

Verb	Meaning	What it describes
わかる	to understand / to be clear	Comprehension of something — the meaning, solution, or content becomes clear to you
しる	to come to know / to learn	Acquisition of a fact or information — whether you have received a piece of information

わかる in Practice

「にほんごがわかります。」— I understand Japanese. (comprehension)
「この問題がわかりません。」— I don’t understand this problem.
「いみがわかった！」— I got it! / I understand the meaning!
「かれのきもちがわかる。」— I understand his feelings.

しる in Practice

しる is almost always used in the PAST or NEGATIVE form in natural conversation. Saying しる in present tense sounds unnatural:

Natural	Unnatural	Reason
しっています	しります ✗	Knowing is an ongoing state → use ている form
しりません	—	Negative is fine as-is
しりませんでした	—	Past negative is fine

Examples:

「かれの名前をしっています。」— I know his name. (fact in memory)
「しりません。」— I don’t know. (fact not in memory)
「それをしらなかった！」— I didn’t know that!

The Classic Mistake

Wrong	Correct	Why
たなかさんをしります	たなかさんをしっています	しる needs ている for present state
にほんごがしっています	にほんごがわかります	Japanese language → comprehension → わかる
いみがしりません	いみがわかりません	Meaning → comprehension → わかる

Quick Memory Rule

わかる — something becomes clear, makes sense, you comprehend it. Think: “I grasp the MEANING.”
しる — you have a FACT stored. Think: “I have the INFO.”

Quick Drill

「___ か？」(Do you know the answer?) — わかる or しる?
「かれのでんわばんごうを ___。」(I know his phone number.) — present state
「このかんじの___ 。」(I don’t understand this kanji.)

Answers: 1. こたえがわかりますか (understand) / 2. しっています / 3. わかりません

Yuka Mixes Up わかる and しる

Mistakes feel embarrassing in the moment but they are the fastest way to learn. Watch how Yuka makes a natural error — and how Rei explains the rule clearly enough to prevent it from happening again.

Yuka

Rei, I said 彼女を知っています and 彼女のことがわかります. Are both correct?

Rei

Both are correct! しっています (from しる) = you know of her — you have that information. わかります (from わかる) = you understand her — you comprehend who she is. They’re often close in meaning but the nuance differs.

Yuka

So しる is about facts and わかる is about understanding?

Rei

Exactly. 答えをしっています — I know the answer (I have the fact). 答えがわかります — I understand/get the answer (I comprehend it). For language: 英語がわかります — I understand English. Not しっています, because it’s about comprehension, not just having the information.

Yuka

And the negative? I want to say ‘I don’t know.’

Rei

Two different negatives! しりません — I don’t know (the information). わかりません — I don’t understand. In conversation, わかりません is more common and flexible. If someone asks for directions: すみません、わかりません — Sorry, I don’t know. Natural and polite.

5 Correct Sentences — Read These Aloud

Each sentence demonstrates the correct usage from this article. Say them aloud to lock in the right pattern.

たなかさんをしっていますか？
Do you know Tanaka-san? (know of)
この問題がわかりません。
I don’t understand this problem. (comprehension)
日本語が少しわかります。
I understand a little Japanese.
答えをしっていますが、言いたくありません。
I know the answer, but I don’t want to say it.
どうすればいいか、わかりました。
I now understand what to do. (わかった = realisation)

Your Turn! Correct the Mistake in the Comments

Here is a sentence with the error from this article. Can you fix it? Write the corrected version — and your own correct sentence — in the comments below.

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