Translation guide
How to express 'three times' in Japanese, covering frequency, multiplication, and common patterns.
Expressing that something happens or is done three times.
The most common and neutral way to say 'three times' for occurrences. Uses the counter 回 (かい) for times/occurrences.
私は日本に三回行ったことがあります。
I have been to Japan three times.
Please take this medicine three times a day.
Also means 'three times', but 度 (ど) can sound slightly more formal or literary. Often interchangeable with 三回, but 三度 is preferred in some set phrases.
三度目の正直。
Third time's the charm. (lit. The third time is the honest one.)
彼は三度も同じ間違いをした。
He made the same mistake three times.
A literary or formal expression meaning 'three times' or 'for the third time'. Rare in everyday speech.
三たび戦場に立つ。
To stand on the battlefield for the third time.
Expressing that something is multiplied by three or is three times as much.
Means 'three times' in the sense of multiplication or multiple. Use 倍 (ばい) for 'times' as in 'X times as much'.
この箱はあの箱の三倍の大きさです。
This box is three times as big as that box.
彼の給料は私の三倍だ。
His salary is three times mine.
Emphasizing that something happens three times consecutively.
Means 'three times in a row'. 連続 (れんぞく) means 'consecutive'.
彼は三回連続で優勝した。
He won the championship three times in a row.
Also means 'three times in a row', using 度 and 続けて (continuously). Slightly more formal than 三回連続.
三度続けて失敗した。
I failed three times in a row.
Both 回 (かい) and 度 (ど) mean 'times' for occurrences. 回 is more common in daily conversation. 度 is slightly more formal and appears in set phrases like 一度 (いちど, once) and 二度と (にどと, never again). For 'three times', 三回 is the default; 三度 is acceptable but may sound a bit stiff unless in a fixed expression.
To say 'the third time' (as in an ordinal), use 三回目 (さんかいめ) or 三度目 (さんどめ). For example, 'This is my third time' → これで三回目です (これでさんかいめです).