LinguaNot letters, but syllables
Japanese hiragana is not an alphabet. Each sign stands for a whole syllable, not a single sound: か is not k, it is ka. There are forty-six of them, and the first five are the vowels on their own – あ い う え お, said a i u e o. Every other sign in the set is one of these five with a consonant in front.
Three strokes for the first, two for the second. The order is fixed and it is what makes the shape come out right.
Two strokes each. Notice that both begin with a short stroke at the top before the long one.
Three strokes, and the last one is the small dot to the upper right. It is easy to forget and impossible to leave out.
| Sign | Said as | A word with it |
|---|---|---|
| あ | a | あい |
| い | i | いえ |
| う | u | うみ |
| え | e | えき |
| お | o | おと |
The five vowels are always said the same way, short and clean, with no glide at the end. え is not the ay of English day; it stops where it starts. Getting these five steady is worth more than learning ten more signs badly.
あいlove
うみthe sea
Words in this lesson
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| あい | love | あいのうた。 A song of love. |
| いえ | house | あたらしいいえ。 A new house. |
| うみ | sea | うみはあおい。 The sea is blue. |
| えき | station | えきはちかい。 The station is near. |
| おと | sound | おとがきこえる。 A sound can be heard. |
| あお | blue | あおいそら。 A blue sky. |
Exercises
This lesson has 8 exercises in the app:
- multiple choice: 3
- trace the letter: 2
- fill the gap: 1
- match the pairs: 1
- listen and type: 1
Try the first one
What does one hiragana sign stand for?
The answer, the other exercises, the audio and your progress are in the app – free at A0 and A1.