Japanese uses two phonetic scripts — hiragana and katakana — each with 46 characters. Here's your complete reference chart for both.
Hiragana is the first script Japanese children and learners tackle. It's used for native Japanese words, grammatical endings, and any word without a kanji. Master these 46 characters first.
Katakana represents the same sounds as hiragana but is used for foreign loanwords, foreign names, scientific terms, and for emphasis. Once you know hiragana, katakana clicks into place quickly — the sounds are identical.
Adding ゛(dakuten) to certain characters voices them; adding ゜(handakuten) to h-row characters creates p-sounds. The same marks apply to both hiragana and katakana.
Seeing is one thing — recognition is another. Our free quiz games get these characters locked into memory fast.