Emoji Shiritori (絵文字しりとり)

About Emoji Shiritori (絵文字しりとり)

Shiritori is a Japanese word chain game: each word must start with the last kana of the word before. Emoji Shiritori turns it into a picture puzzle. The site describes it as a game of linking emoji in shiritori, with a puzzle that changes every day and an answer common to all users. Puzzles are numbered, for example 第987回 on 2 October 2026.

The board shows a starting kana, for example な (na), with the instruction to find an emoji whose name begins with it, next to a grid of 20 emoji such as a chestnut, boots, a deer, a potato, a maple leaf and a steam train. When you pick the right one, the last sound of its name becomes the next starting kana, and so on through the chain. You have four lives, an undo button that costs a heart and a give-up option, and a score.

The game is part of Puzzlega.me, a Japanese site that also runs a Japanese Spelling Bee, a crossword, a cryptogram, Waffle and other daily puzzles.

It suits Japanese speakers and intermediate learners of Japanese who know everyday vocabulary and want a playful daily test of it.

How to play Emoji Shiritori (絵文字しりとり)

1. Read the starting kana shown on the left.
2. Find the emoji whose Japanese name begins with that kana and tap it.
3. The last kana of that word becomes the next starting sound; keep chaining.
4. Use all the right emoji before you run out of four lives; undo costs a heart.

Screenshots

Tips

• Say each emoji's name aloud in Japanese; some have more than one common name.
• Long vowels and small kana follow shiritori conventions, so think about how the word ends in kana.
• Look for emoji whose names start with rare kana first; they are easier to place.
• Avoid guessing: a wrong tap costs a life.

Questions