I Love KanjiHiragana chart and practice ひらがな
Hiragana is the basic Japanese phonetic script: 46 characters, each one a syllable. It writes native words, grammar endings and particles, so it is the first thing to learn. The chart below shows every character with its romaji; the quiz tests you on them.
Practice
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あ
Type the romaji and press Enter
Hiragana chart
あa
いi
うu
えe
おo
かka
きki
くku
けke
こko
さsa
しshi
すsu
せse
そso
たta
ちchi
つtsu
てte
とto
なna
にni
ぬnu
ねne
のno
はha
ひhi
ふfu
へhe
ほho
まma
みmi
むmu
めme
もmo
やya
ゆyu
よyo
らra
りri
るru
れre
ろro
わwa
をo
んn
Dakuten and handakuten (voiced sounds)
Two dashes (゛) or a small circle (゜) change the consonant: か ka → が ga, は ha → ぱ pa.
がga
ぎgi
ぐgu
げge
ごgo
ざza
じji
ずzu
ぜze
ぞzo
だda
ぢji
づzu
でde
どdo
ばba
びbi
ぶbu
べbe
ぼbo
ぱpa
ぴpi
ぷpu
ぺpe
ぽpo
Combinations (yōon)
A small ゃ, ゅ or ょ after an i-row character makes one syllable.
きゃkya
きゅkyu
きょkyo
しゃsha
しゅshu
しょsho
ちゃcha
ちゅchu
ちょcho
にゃnya
にゅnyu
にょnyo
ひゃhya
ひゅhyu
ひょhyo
みゃmya
みゅmyu
みょmyo
りゃrya
りゅryu
りょryo
ぎゃgya
ぎゅgyu
ぎょgyo
じゃja
じゅju
じょjo
びゃbya
びゅbyu
びょbyo
ぴゃpya
ぴゅpyu
ぴょpyo
Tips
- Learn one row a day (a, ka, sa …) and quiz yourself before moving on.
- Read real words as soon as possible – e.g. ねこ (猫, cat) or たべる (食べる, to eat).
- Watch out for look-alikes: さ/ち, は/ほ, ね/れ/わ, ぬ/め.
Questions
How long does it take to learn hiragana?
Most learners can read all 46 basic hiragana after a few days of short daily practice. Writing them from memory takes a little longer.
Why is は read “wa” and を read “o”?
When は is the topic particle it is pronounced “wa”, and the particle を is pronounced “o”. Elsewhere は is “ha”.
What are the small ゃ, ゅ and ょ?
Written small after an i-row kana, they form one combined syllable: き + ゃ = きゃ (kya).
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Last reviewed 2026-10-09 by the I Love Kanji team.