The Kana Guide
Hiragana & Katakana
Two scripts, one sound system. Every kana below is grouped with its same-sounding partner in the other script, plus a shape mnemonic to make it stick — study the pair together, then meet them in a real word each day.
Used for native Japanese words, grammar particles (は, を, が), and verb/adjective endings. It's the first script Japanese children learn, and every kanji can be spelled out in it if you don't know the character.
Used for loanwords borrowed from other languages (コンピューター, computer), foreign names, onomatopoeia, and for emphasis — the rough equivalent of italics in English.
The 46 Base Sounds
Grouped by row (gojūon order) — the same order dictionaries and phone-typing use.
a-row
a
The loop looks like an open mouth saying "ah" — the same shape as the sound.
A sharp roof-and-post shape — think of the letter A stripped down to two strokes.
i
Two curved strokes standing side by side, like a pair of "ii" (good) friends leaning together.
A stick figure standing at attention — one straight leg, one kicked back.
u
A head ducking under something, brim first — "u" for "under".
A satellite dish or roof with an antenna poking up through it.
e
Looks like a little easel on legs — "e" for "easel".
A capital "H" tipped on its side, like a steel girder.
o
A spinning top with a loop of string trailing off it, mid-spin.
A person mid karate-chop, arm slicing down and out.
ka-row
ka
A sickle swinging down through grass, with a little seed flying off the tip.
The same sickle, but straightened into two hard, angular strokes.
ki
A key, with two little teeth cut into the shaft.
The same key shape, drawn with sharp corners instead of curves.
ku
A single curled claw or boomerang, tucked inward.
A claw again, but bent at a hard angle like a folded arm.
ke
A leg mid-kick, knee raised, foot flicking out.
The same kicking leg, stiffened into straight lines.
ko
Two curved rail segments laid one above the other, clacking "ko-ko".
An open box, missing its right-hand wall.
sa-row
sa
A hand saw, teeth down, mid-stroke through wood.
A TV antenna bolted to a rooftop pole.
shi
One calm, curved stroke — like a finger held up for "shh".
Three short sparks flying off in the same direction — sharper than its hiragana twin.
su
A straw's swirl, sucking a drop up and around.
A ski slope with a jump ramp at the bottom.
se
A low stool or seesaw, seen from the side.
A box with its lid propped half open.
so
A thread zigzagging through cloth — "so" as in "sewn".
A single raindrop caught falling at an angle.
ta-row
ta
A person taking a bow, arms crossed — "ta-da".
A table, seen from the side with one leg forward.
chi
A single curled loop, like a cereal ring.
A golf club mid swing, following through.
tsu
One wave, cresting and about to break — a tsunami in miniature.
Three sharp wave-crests in a row, breaking together.
te
A hand reaching out and bending at the wrist — fittingly, 手 (te) means "hand".
A television antenna crossed by a signal bar.
to
A toe kicking a door open at the hinge.
A single post with one branch — a signpost by the road.
na-row
na
A knot, tied and pulled tight — "na" as in "knot".
A plus sign crossed by one extra diagonal stroke.
ni
Two horizontal strokes with a hook — close to the kanji 二 (two).
Two flat strokes stacked, exactly like the kanji for "two".
nu
Noodles twisted around a fork, looping back on themselves.
The same noodle twist, pulled taut into a sharper loop.
ne
A cat curling its tail around its paws — ねこ (neko, "cat") starts with ne.
A knitting needle threading through a loop of yarn.
no
One continuous swirl, like tracing a "no-entry" circle.
A single downward slash — the simplest stroke in either script.
ha-row
ha
A stick figure laughing, legs kicked open — "ha ha".
The same open legs, straightened into two sharp strokes.
hi
A single curved smile, mid "hee" laugh.
A can opener's hooked blade.
fu
Mount Fuji's silhouette, two slopes and a summit — fu for Fuji.
A single fishhook, angled sharply at the tip.
he
A small mountain peak, one clean upward stroke.
The identical peak shape — hiragana and katakana share this one.
ho
A signpost with a little flag flying off the crossbar.
The same signpost, drawn as a bare pole with two side struts.
ma-row
ma
A mother's apron, tied with a loop at the waist.
A fishhook with a small flag caught on the line.
mi
A fishhook curling into a spiral, like a mirrored "3".
Three short parallel waves, side by side.
mu
A cow's face, mid "moo", with a curled tail at the end.
A cow's horns, seen head-on as an upside-down V.
me
A slanted eye mid-blink — fittingly, 目 (me) means "eye".
An eye squeezed shut into a sharp "X".
mo
Seaweed swaying on a line — 藻 (mo) means "algae".
A sprout pushing up through two crossbars of soil.
ya-row
ya
A slingshot, pulled back and loaded.
The same slingshot, straightened into a sharp "Y".
yu
Steam curling off a hot spring — 湯 (yu) means "hot water".
The same hot-spring curl, drawn with two straight strokes.
yo
A person waving one arm high — "yo!".
A ladder with three even rungs.
ra-row
ra
A rabbit's ear, flopped over at the tip.
A coat hanger, hook and crossbar.
ri
Two chopsticks leaning together, about to fall.
The same two chopsticks, standing straight and separate.
ru
A loop tied off at the bottom, like a treble clef.
A small hook with a short tail curling under it.
re
A person leaning back in a chair, relaxed.
A single check mark, flicked upward.
ro
A winding corridor, folding back on itself like a maze.
A square box — the same shape as the kanji 口 ("mouth").
wa / n-row
wa
A person waving both arms overhead — "wa!".
A head with a curl of hair flopping over one eye.
wo
A figure bending into a bow — today used almost only as the を object particle.
The rare katakana counterpart — you'll mostly meet を, not this, in normal reading.
n
A single trailing hook — the only kana that's a consonant with no vowel, and it can end a word.
Two short strokes, easy to confuse with シ/ツ — context (and which script) tells them apart.
Voicing Marks
Small marks that turn a base kana into a related sound — no new shapes to memorize.
Dakuten ( ゙ → か゛ = が )
Two small strokes in the upper-right corner voice an unvoiced consonant: k→g, s→z, t→d, h→b. か (ka) becomes が (ga), さ (sa) becomes ざ (za), は (ha) becomes ば (ba).
かぎ (kagi, "key") — か stays unvoiced, ぎ (gi) is き (ki) voiced.
Handakuten ( ゚ → ほ゜ = ぽ )
A small circle, used only on the h-row, turns h into p instead of b: は (ha) → ぱ (pa), ひ (hi) → ぴ (pi), ふ (fu) → ぷ (pu).
てんぷら (tempura) — ぷ (pu) is ふ (fu) with a handakuten.
Combos & Small Kana
The remaining pieces that let kana spell out any sound in the language.
Small ゃ/ゅ/ょ (ya/yu/yo) — palatalized sounds
A full-size i-row kana followed by a small ゃ, ゅ, or ょ glides the two together into one syllable: き + small ゃ = きゃ (kya), し + small ゅ = しゅ (shu).
きょう (kyou, "today") — き + small ょ, not "ki-yo-u".
Small っ/ッ (sokuon) — doubled consonants
A small tsu inserts a brief pause that doubles the next consonant. It never has its own sound — it's a beat of silence written into the word.
きっぷ (kippu, "ticket") vs きぷ — the small っ is what makes the "pp" stop.
Long vowel mark ー (katakana only)
Katakana stretches a vowel with a dash instead of repeating a kana, which is how English loanwords keep their long vowels legible.
コーヒー (koohii, "coffee") — each ー holds the vowel before it for an extra beat.
Put It Into Practice
Every word on NipponDaily is written out with its kana reading, so the 46 sounds above are the key to reading each entry's “Taken apart” breakdown.