Hiragana chart and quiz
Hiragana is the first Japanese alphabet to learn: 46 basic characters, each one a syllable. Here is the full chart with romaji, the voiced and combined sounds, and a quick quiz so you can check what you remember.
The gojūon chart
Read each row from left to right. The gaps are intentional: modern Japanese does not use every possible combination. を is pronounced o; wo is also accepted in the quiz.
| a | i | u | e | o |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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wo | |||
| んn |
Dakuten and handakuten
Two small strokes voice a sound, as in か ka becoming が ga. A small circle turns the h row into the p row, as in は ha becoming ぱ pa.
| a | i | u | e | o |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
Combined sounds (yōon)
An i-column kana combines with a small ゃ, ゅ or ょ to make one sound, as in きゃ kya. The quiz accepts common alternative spellings.
| ya | yu | yo |
|---|---|---|
| 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 |
Characters people mix up
- さ/ち
- ぬ/め
- ね/れ/わ
- る/ろ
- き/さ
- は/ほ
A quick quiz
Type the romaji. Choose a row or sound group for a ten-question round. Small groups repeat characters.
To review
Practice speaking free
Reading it is the first step. In PollyStop you use it in real conversations with Polly, your AI tutor, and practice out loud.
Practice speaking freeFrequently asked questions
How long does it take to learn hiragana?
Most people can read all 46 in one to two weeks with ten minutes a day. Writing takes longer.
Should I learn hiragana or katakana first?
Hiragana. It's used for grammar and native words, so you see it in almost every sentence.
What is romaji?
Japanese written in the Latin alphabet. It helps at the start, but switch to kana as soon as you can.
Can I print this chart?
Yes. Use "Print / save as PDF" for a clean chart without the quiz.
Practice speaking free
Reading it is the first step. In PollyStop you use it in real conversations with Polly, your AI tutor, and practice out loud.
Practice speaking free