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CLI

The kotobase command provides several subcommands for different types of lookups.

General Lookup

The lookup command is the most comprehensive way to search for a word.

kotobase lookup 日本語

This will show you dictionary entries, kanji information, JLPT levels, and example sentences for the word "日本語".

Options:

  • -n, --names: Include proper names from JMnedict in the search.
  • -w, --wildcard: Treat * or % as wildcards in the search term.
  • -s, --sentences: Specify the number of example sentences to show.
  • --json-out: Output the full results as a JSON object.

Kanji Lookup

To get information about a specific kanji character:

kotobase kanji 語

This will display the kanji's grade, stroke count, meanings, on'yomi, and kun'yomi readings, and JLPT level.

JLPT Lookup

To check the JLPT level for a word or kanji:

kotobase jlpt 勉強

Database

Kotobase relies on a local SQLite database.

You can also build it from the source files yourself.

The following commands are available for managing the database:

kotobase pull-db

Downloads the pre-built SQLite database from a public Google Drive Folder. This file is overwritten every week with a rebuilt database from updated sources. The rebuilding and overwriting is managed by a GitHub action in this repository.

kotobase build

Builds the SQLite database from the raw source files. This will download the latest version of the source files (Except Tanos JLPT lists which are shipped with the package itself.) and build the database locally.