Hiragana is an alphabet of the Japanese language and an essential building block in learning and understanding Japanese. Weโre here to put your skills to the testโfor each question, choose the correct pronunciation for each hiragana letter shown.
If youโre ready to take on this challenge, hit โStart Quiz.โ
Questions Overview
- U
- I
- A
- O
- Ka
- Ke
- Ki
- Sa
- Su
- Shi
- Se
- Nu
- Ke
- Ne
- He
- Ku
- Ko
- Ki
- Chi
- Ri
- Ra
- Ri
- Re
- Ba
- Nu
- Tsu
- No
- Ni
- Ho
- Mo
- Hi
- Ha
- Te
- Ta
- To
- Ne
- O
- E
- I
- A
- Ha
- Hi
- Fu
- Ya
- Mi
- Me
- Mo
- Shi
- Ru
- Ro
- Re
- Zu
- To
- Tsu
- Ta
- Go
- Na
- Ni
- Ne
- Ga
- Wa
- Wo
- N
- V
- Yo
- Yu
- Ya
- No
- Re
- Ri
- Ra
- Ge
- Za
- Zu
- Ji
- Pu
- Be
- Zo
- Bi
- Bo
- Ji
- Ze
- Zu
- Mu
- Gu
- Go
- Ro
- Dzu
- Po
- Pi
- Pu
- Dji
- Dzu
- De
- Do
- Wo
- Bu
- Bi
- Ba
- Pa
- Gya
- Kya
- Pya
- Gyu
- Pyo
- Myo
- Ryo
- Pyu
- Myu
- Byu
- Ju
- Mya
- Hyu
- Nyu
- Shu
- Hyo
- Nya
- Mya
- Cha
- Nyu
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Intro to Japanese: What Is Hiragana?
When you think of English (among other languages), you probably think of the ABCs: a single, 26-letter alphabet that allows speakers to form, spell, and pronounce words. In Japanese, the closest equivalent to the English ABCs would be hiragana. Letโs break it down further:
The Japanese Alphabets
Japanese technically has 4 alphabets/writing systemsโbut hiragana is the most important one to learn first, since it represents all the different sounds that can be authentically produced in Japanese. Once youโve mastered hiragana, itโll be so much easier to dive into other Japanese alphabets, like katakana and kanji.
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Hiragana: The core Japanese alphabet that represents all the different sounds that can be made in the Japanese language.
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Katakana: A Japanese alphabet used to spell/signify foreign words. It has the same sounds as hiragana, but uses a different spelling system.
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Kanji: A Japanese script written with Chinese characters, which helps to form all sorts of words within the Japanese language.
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Romaji: The English transcription of Japanese words.
How many hiragana letters are there?
There are 46 core letters in the base hiragana alphabet. Some visualizations categorize the hiragana alphabet , with the vertical axis representing the core vowel sound (a, i, u, e, o) and the horizontal axis representing the core consonant sound (k, s, t, n, h, m, y, r, w, n).
This is just a starting point, though. The hiragana alphabet can produce over 100 different unique sounds thanks to dakuten, handakuten, and combinations.
- Dakuten: A mark that resembles a quotation mark (โ) placed next to the hiragana letter, changing the original pronunciation to a g, z, d, b, or j sound.
- Handakuten: A mark that resembles a degree sign (ยฐ) placed next to the hiragana letter, changing the original pronunciation to a p sound.
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Combinations: The process of combining a primary hiragana letter with the ya (ใ), yu (ใ
), or yo (ใ) sound, creating a new in the process.
| Key | a | i | u | e | o |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vowels | ใ | ใ | ใ | ใ | ใ |
| K | ใ | ใ | ใ | ใ | ใ |
| S | ใ | ใ | ใ | ใ | ใ |
| T | ใ | ใก | ใค | ใฆ | ใจ |
| N | ใช | ใซ | ใฌ | ใญ | ใฎ |
| H | ใฏ | ใฒ | ใต | ใธ | ใป |
| M | ใพ | ใฟ | ใ | ใ | ใ |
| Y | ใ | ใ | ใ | ||
| R | ใ | ใ | ใ | ใ | ใ |
| Sound | Hiragana Letter |
|---|---|
| wa | ใ |
| wo | ใ |
| n | ใ |
| v | ใ |
| Key | g | z | d | b | p |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | ใ | ใ | ใ | ใ | ใ |
| Z | ใ | ใ | ใ | ใ | ใ |
| D | ใ | ใข | ใฅ | ใง | ใฉ |
| B | ใฐ | ใณ | ใถ | ใน | ใผ |
| P | ใฑ | ใด | ใท | ใบ | ใฝ |
| Key | Ya | Yu | Yo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ki | ใใ | ใใ | ใใ |
| Gi | ใใ | ใใ | ใใ |
| Shi | ใใ | ใใ | ใใ |
| Ji | ใใ | ใใ | ใใ |
| Ji | ใขใ | ใขใ | ใขใ |
| Chi | ใกใ | ใกใ | ใกใ |
| Ni | ใซใ | ใซใ | ใซใ |
| Hi | ใฒใ | ใฒใ | ใฒใ |
| Bi | ใณใ | ใณใ | ใณใ |
| Pi | ใดใ | ใดใ | ใดใ |
| Mi | ใฟใ | ใฟใ | ใฟใ |
| Ri | ใใ | ใใ | ใใ |
Want to learn more?
Want to refresh your hiragana skills, or learn a little more about the Japanese alphabets in general? Check out:
