Background
あ character

Hiragana: The ABCs of Japanese

Master the foundational writing system that unlocks all of Japanese.

Essential Resources

What is Hiragana?

Hiragana is one of the three writing systems of Japanese—used alongside Katakana and Kanji. It’s mainly for native Japanese words and grammatical elements that connect words into sentences.

There are 46 Hiragana characters. But don’t panic—all of them are built from the same five vowels you already met in our pronunciation lesson:

あ い う え お
a • i • u • e • o

These are the foundation. Every other Hiragana character builds on them.

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So if I learn hiragana, I can start reading real Japanese?
Exactly. That's why it's the first step in your learning journey.
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Building a Row

Put a consonant in front of each vowel, and you unlock a whole row of new sounds:

Here's the k‑row:

か

ka

ca·r

き

ki

ke·y

く

ku

co·upon

け

ke

ke·pt

こ

ko

co·rner

One consonant × five vowels = a predictable row of Hiragana.

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…and here's the r‑row:

ら

ra

ra·w

り

ri

re·ap

る

ru

roo·m

れ

re

re·d

ろ

ro

ro·w

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The Full Chart

あ

a

い

i

う

u

え

e

お

o

k

か

ka

き

ki

く

ku

け

ke

こ

ko

s

さ

sa

し

shi*

す

su

せ

se

そ

so

t

た

ta

ち

chi*

つ

tsu*

て

te

と

to

n

な

na

に

ni

ぬ

nu

ね

ne

の

no

h

は

ha

ひ

hi

ふ

fu*

へ

he

ほ

ho

m

ま

ma

み

mi

む

mu

め

me

も

mo

y

や

ya

ゆ

yu

よ

yo

r

ら

ra

り

ri

る

ru

れ

re

ろ

ro

w

わ

wa

を

wo*

n

ん

n*

Forty‑six characters in all—enough to write anything in Japanese.

The Exceptions

Japanese is wonderfully consistent—but there are a handful of quirks you should know:

し→ “shi”

ち→ “chi”つ→ “tsu”

ふ→ soft “fu” (gentle breath)

ん→ the only consonant, “n” or “m”

を→ written “wo”, usually pronounced “o”

How to Actually Learn These

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Sensei… there are 46 of these squiggles. I'll never remember them all!
Fear not—the internet has come to rescue you!
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📄 Tofugu's Free Hiragana PDF

Mnemonics + practice sheets. Many learners master all 46 kana in days.

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I'll check that out. What comes after mastering these squiggles?
Once you've learned the characters, we'll practice Japanese greetings. Don't worry about perfection—we'll ease you in with romaji this time. But next chapter? You're on your own, kid.
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Your First Words

Let’s put this into practice! Here are a few simple words spelled entirely in Hiragana:

ねこ

ne + ko

cat

すし

su + shi

sushi

はな

ha + na

flower

Try sounding out these too: たこ, うみ, みせ, またね, こころ
sensei

A Note from Sensei

Hiragana feels huge at first, but think of it like collecting tea cups— pulls out absolutely massive tea cup set from nowhere —learn a few every day, and before long, you'll have the full set.

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