いっ vs いち, Is there a rule/tip to help me? I am struggling with them

[cklehe]

Hi Guys,

I tried to look on the internet and on the forum here and could not find a question/answer about it. So sorry if it was already asked/answered.

So I started learning japanese and I like it a lot, wanikani is what made me start and is such a great tool.

Anyhow back to my question, I am starting to get more and more vocab on wanikani with the one / 一 kanji.
And sometimes it is the usual way of saying it:
いち
example:
いちもんじ
いちだ
but some other time it is with the small っ:
いっ
example:
いっせん
いっき

For now I just try to memorize it for each vocab, but I am starting to just confund them all the time and most of my errors in reviews are with this difference in writting this kanji in kana.

My question is, is there some rule or tip to know which version should I use? Or is it only random and I just have to learn it the hard/right way?

Thanks for your feedback!
Chris.

[Kazzeon]

You already noticed that it happens with certain sounds, like せ or き.

Now, how would you use いっ with も or だ?
I’m on the phone so I can’t investigate as much, but it’s usually with かさたぱ rows, afaik.

Hope that helps.

[Astroraptor]

I noticed that if the kana after the kanji 一 can take a dakuten, いち becomes いっ and if it can take a handakuten it will also become いっ and the character after will have a handakuten.

Basically like @Kazzeon said, かさたぱ rows will change いち to いっ.

[cklehe]

Thanks a lot, that’s of great help already. I wondered also if it was something like this, I was trying to find some kind of general rule in this way, I just did not have that much history/wanikani levels or confidence that it followed some logic.

[Hyva]

It’s about where in the mouth the sound is made. The shortening takes place to make it easier to pronounce. So if it has two sound that are rather difficult to pronounce in succession there is (usually) a modification.
Take for example 一歩. if I try to say いちほ like the knaji I feel like running out of breath while saying it, while いっぽ goes much easier. My suggestion, try speaking out the words aloud. That’s what i did and after a while i could guess if and what modification would take place before revealing the pronunciation.

[Kazzeon]

@Hyva

Take for example 一歩. if I try to say いちほ like the knaji I feel like running out of breath while saying it, while いっぽ goes much easier.

サスケうっぱ。
I’m sorry.

[cklehe]

Great tip, I already have a better feeling for it after reviewing the list of vocab with 一 in wanikani and try to say them out loud. Thanks.

[Hyva]

took me way too long to understand that…

[Skybison]

Ahh, there is a rule! And here was was just saying them out loud and trying to feel it. Thank you!

[cklehe]

Yeah, I am applying it now, and it is a savior this one. The can the next kana take a dakuten, then shorten it is a super fast system. Looks like it applies in other case of contraction like:
にっこう - 日光.