LinguaA small ゃ, ゅ or ょ fuses two signs into one syllable
After any kana of the i column – き し ち に ひ み り and their voiced forms – a small ゃ, ゅ or ょ may follow. The two signs then count as one syllable: き + ゃ is kya, not kiya. Size is the whole difference: きや is two beats, きゃ is one. Written by hand the small kana sits in the lower left of its square.
| Pair | Sound | Word |
|---|---|---|
| きゃ | kya | きゃく |
| しゃ | sha | しゃしん |
| ちょ | cho | ちょっと |
| じゅ | ju | じゅぎょう |
| びょ | byo | びょういん |
| りょ | ryo | りょうり |
A small っ is a beat of silence
The small っ is never pronounced on its own. It doubles the consonant that follows and holds it for one full beat, so きて (kite) and きって (kitte) are different words with different lengths. Say the stop: close the mouth on the consonant, wait, then release.
Long vowels are written with an extra kana
Hiragana has no length mark: a long vowel is simply the same vowel written again. あ after an a-sound (おかあさん), い after an i-sound (おにいさん), う after a u-sound (くうき). Two combinations are irregular in spelling but regular in sound: an e-sound is usually lengthened with い (せんせい, とけい), and an o-sound with う (おとうさん, きょう). Length is meaning: おばさん is an aunt, おばあさん a grandmother.
| Vowel | Written with | Word |
|---|---|---|
| a | あ | おかあさん |
| i | い | おにいさん |
| u | う | くうき |
| e | い | せんせい |
| o | う | がっこう |
ちょっとまってくださいPlease wait a moment.
おかあさんのとけいmother's watch
Words in this lesson
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| きって | postage stamp | てがみときって a letter and a stamp |
| がっこう | school | おおきいがっこう a big school |
| しゃしん | photograph | がっこうのしゃしん a photograph of the school |
| じゅぎょう | class, lesson | にほんごのじゅぎょう a Japanese class |
| おかあさん | mother | わたしのおかあさん my mother |
| せんせい | teacher | にほんごのせんせい a Japanese teacher |
| とけい | clock, watch | あたらしいとけい a new watch |
| びょういん | hospital | まちのびょういん the town hospital |
| りょうり | cooking, dish | おいしいりょうり delicious food |
| きょう | today | きょうとあした today and tomorrow |
Exercises
This lesson has 10 exercises in the app:
- multiple choice: 3
- match the pairs: 1
- fill the gap: 2
- build the sentence: 2
- translate the sentence: 1
- listen and type: 1
Try the first one
Which spelling is read *sha*, as one syllable?
The answer, the other exercises, the audio and your progress are in the app – free at A0 and A1.