# Shirabe Jisho — Offline dictionary and more

> Offline Japanese-English dictionary with kanji, names, and example sentences. (iPhone/iPad app by Blazej Stanek.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shirabe-jisho/id1005203380 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Blazej Stanek](https://appshunter.io/developer/1005203379)
- Category: Reference, Education
- Price: Free
- Rating: 4.90/5 from 8,714 App Store ratings · 1,528 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 15.6 · 182 MB
- Languages: American English, Japanese
- Released: 2015-09-04
- Data updated: 2026-08-28
- Monetization: free
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shirabe-jisho/id1005203380/reviews.md

## What is Shirabe Jisho?

Simple but powerful Japanese-English, English-Japanese dictionary app. 

The app's features include:

● Over 170.000 dictionary entries with readings and english meaning
● Over 6.500 kanji characters with stroke order
● Over 730.000 Japanese names, place names and institution names
● Over 147.000 example sentences with translation

● Instantaneous search results

● Character input by kanji and kana handwriting recognition. Recognition algorithm can handle wrong stroke order and small mistakes.
● When multiple similar characters are found, you don't need to redo drawing after each character - just long  press to see a preview
● Search by kanji radicals (for example 日 and 月 will find 明)
● Wildcard search - "*" can replace any number of characters and "?" can replace any single character. Works both with English and Japanese words.
● Search by kanji, kana and romaji - "じしょ", "じsho" and "jisho" will give the same search results

● Kanji lists by JLPT level and school grade (1 - 6)
● Multiple word lists divided by subject, grammatical function, JLPT level and more

## Key features

- Offline Japanese-English dictionary
- Kanji with stroke order
- Japanese names database
- Example sentences with translation
- Handwriting recognition
- Advanced search (wildcard, radicals)
- Kanji lists by JLPT level

## What do users think of Shirabe Jisho?

Overall sentiment: positive

**Pros**

- 🚀 Comprehensive dictionary with many features
- 👍 Easy to use and intuitive interface
- 💡 Ability to draw kanji for lookup
- 🚀 Offline functionality
- 👍 Detailed word information including conjugations, example sentences, and JLPT levels
- 👍 Useful word lists and flashcard system
- 🚀 Fast and responsive
- 🚀 No ads or in-app purchases

**Cons**

- 🐛 Search history can get cluttered
- 👎 Lack of pitch accent information
- 👎 Some example sentences are of poor quality
- 👎 Font size can be difficult to read on smaller screens

**Commonly reported bugs**

- Occasional crashes or freezes
- Inconsistent font sizing in search results

**Most requested features**

- Ability to sync bookmarks/lists across devices
- More customization options for flashcards
- Integration with spaced repetition apps like Anki
- Addition of pitch accent information
- Improved search history management

## Recent user reviews (10 of 1,528)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shirabe-jisho/id1005203380/reviews.md

### 5/5 — To the developer

*2026-08-21, version 1.10.7*

I love you ,thank you so much for making this ,it really helps with learning Japanese, it being free is just yet another reason for me to love you more

### 5/5 — good dictionary

*2026-08-16, version 1.10.7*

i like how it has stroke orders and direction for all kanji

### 4/5 — Useful

*2026-08-15, version 1.10.7*

Decided to try this one and a couple of others after Imiwa destroyed itself in its last update. This is the one I kept

### 5/5 — Easy and simple

*2026-08-14, version 1.10.7*

Easy and simple

### 5/5 — Good Jisho

*2026-08-10, version 1.10.7*

Much better than the other Jisho I was using. The handwritten congee function is not as forgiven as the other Jisho I was using, but it has much fewer bugs and much more examples sentences so overall it’s a better jisho

### 5/5 — I log this app

*2026-08-08, version 1.10.7*

Awesome super ultra cool !! お疲れ！！

### 5/5 — The best

*2026-08-07, version 1.10.7*

The best on iPad and iPhone, also works well on macOS.

### 5/5 — Indispensable

*2026-08-05, version 1.10.7*

Nothing flashy and exciting, but simple to use and enormously useful. Would absolutely recommend.

### 5/5 — Excellent japanese app

*2026-07-31, version 1.10.7*

Good app to look up kanji with detailed examples 
Should be one of the tools to enhance learning 
Peter Lo

### 3/5 — Cannot fully recommend until certain issues are addressed

*2026-07-27, version 1.10.7*

I am a paid, frequent user of Shirabe Jisho. While it is a very good overall app, it has some notable flaws:

1. Bookmarks/saved entries cannot be attached to an account and used between devices. I have 400+ entries saved in my Shirabe Jisho iPhone app, but when I use Shirabe Jisho on iPad or Mac those saved entries do not transfer.

2. There are only two color themes, green and blue, and the blue is actually purple. Purple has poor contrast on a dark background. More colors, please.

3. Font/UI scaling on the Mac OS app is awful. 100% is too small. 200% is broken.

## Frequently asked questions about Shirabe Jisho

### What does Shirabe Jisho do?

Shirabe Jisho is a powerful offline Japanese-English and English-Japanese dictionary. It offers a vast number of dictionary entries, detailed kanji information including stroke order, and extensive databases of Japanese names and example sentences with translations.

### What are the key features of Shirabe Jisho?

Key features include over 170,000 dictionary entries, 6,500 kanji with stroke order, handwriting recognition for character input, advanced search options like wildcard and radical searches, and categorized kanji lists by JLPT level and school grade.

### Is Shirabe Jisho free to use?

Yes, Shirabe Jisho is a free application. It does not have any in-app purchases or advertisements, providing a completely free experience for users.

### What devices is Shirabe Jisho compatible with?

The provided data does not specify compatibility details such as operating systems (iOS, Android) or minimum version requirements. However, it is designed as a mobile application.

### How can I search for words or characters in Shirabe Jisho?

You can search using various methods: direct text input in English or Japanese, handwriting recognition for kanji and kana (even with incorrect stroke order), by kanji radicals, or using wildcard characters ('*' and '?'). It also accepts romaji input.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 1.10.8 — 2026-08-23

fixed kanji display issues
various stability and ui fixes

### 1.10.7 — 2026-06-22

updated dictionary databases
added WaniKani level info
fixed speech badly reading some words
stability fixes

### 1.10.6 — 2026-05-12

fixed app hanging during import
fixes in examples for some entries
small search improvement for conjugated entries
ui and stability fixes

### 1.10.5 — 2026-03-09

Extended import functionalities
Improved custom bookmarks
Various UI fixes and stability fixes

### 1.10.4 — 2026-02-19

Keyboard recognition improvements
Fixes for suggestion dropdowns appearing with incorrect background
UI fixes
Stability fixes

## Apps similar to Shirabe Jisho

| App | Rating | Price | Category |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Japanese Dictionary - Nihongo](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/japanese-dictionary-nihongo/id881697245) | 4.8 (1,829) | Free | Reference |
| [Yomiwa - Japanese Dictionary](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/yomiwa-japanese-dictionary/id670931120) | 4.7 (1,127) | Free | Reference |
| [MOJisho: Japanese Dictionary](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mojisho-japanese-dictionary/id1021094295) | 4.8 (1,433) | Free | Reference |
| [Mazii: Japanese Dictionary](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mazii-japanese-dictionary/id933081417) | 4.6 (353) | Free | Reference |
| [Kanji Learner's Dictionary](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/kanji-learners-dictionary/id716481897) | 4.6 (12) | $19.99 | Reference |
| [Japanese](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/japanese/id290664053) | 4.8 (3,572) | Free | Reference |

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-28.*
