さ · き
sa and ki
Look for ki's extra lower stroke. Fonts may connect or separate its upper strokes.
ひらがな · focused practice
Learn hiragana, then quiz yourself.
Use the chart to build recognition, compare the shapes learners most often mix up, and open a hiragana-only practice set when you are ready to read without hints.
The rounded phonetic script
What hiragana does
Hiragana represents Japanese sounds. You will see it in grammatical endings, particles, function words, and readings written above unfamiliar kanji.
Each basic hiragana maps to a mora—a short rhythmic sound unit. Start by pairing the shape with its sound, not with a picture or a fixed position on a chart.
Once the basic 46 are comfortable, marks such as dakuten turn sounds like か (ka) into が (ga), while small ゃ・ゅ・ょ create combinations such as きょ (kyo).
The basic 46
Hiragana chart
Read each character aloud before checking the romaji below it. The particle を is usually pronounced “o,” although “wo” remains a common teaching label.
Vowels
- あa
- いi
- うu
- えe
- おo
K row
- かka
- きki
- くku
- けke
- こko
S row
- さsa
- しshi
- すsu
- せse
- そso
T row
- たta
- ちchi
- つtsu
- てte
- とto
N row
- なna
- にni
- ぬnu
- ねne
- のno
H row
- はha
- ひhi
- ふfu
- へhe
- ほho
M row
- まma
- みmi
- むmu
- めme
- もmo
Y row
- やya
- ゆyu
- よyo
R row
- らra
- りri
- るru
- れre
- ろro
W row
- わwa
- をwo / o
Final n
- んn
Recognition practice
Slow down for these look-alikes
Compare the decisive stroke instead of memorizing the overall silhouette. Switching typefaces in quiz settings is especially helpful here.
ぬ · め
nu and me
Nu finishes with a loop and trailing curl; me stops after the rounded crossing stroke.
れ · ね
re and ne
Ne closes into a loop on the right. Re stays open and finishes with a sweep.
る · ろ
ru and ro
Ru has a small loop at the bottom; ro keeps the same opening shape without it.
A practical sequence
Learn in rows, recall at random
Rows make the first pass manageable. Random order is what turns familiarity into reading skill.
- 01
Vowels first
Learn あ・い・う・え・お until their sounds are immediate.
- 02
Add one row
Work through K, S, T, and N in five-character groups.
- 03
Finish the core
Add H, M, Y, R, W, and the standalone ん.
- 04
Mix the order
Stop relying on chart position and recall each character on sight.
Put the chart away