Japanese grammar · Beginner 1

カタカナア行〜ワ行katakana a-gyou~wa-gyou

Katakana sounds and loanwords

Read 「カタカナア行〜ワ行」 aloud and learn how katakana often write loanwords and foreign names.

Start the interactive lessonIllustrated cards, audio and speaking practice

How it works

Katakana and hiragana look different but have the same sounds. Look at the hiragana below, then read the chart row by row.
The second half of the chart also uses the same sounds. Read from the ハ row to the ワ row and find sounds you already know.
Katakana often have angular shapes. The three pairs in the picture look similar but sound different. First, look closely at their differences.
The two short strokes in シ are more horizontal; those in ツ are more vertical. Read シ as し and ツ as つ.
The short stroke in ソ is more vertical; the one in ン is more horizontal. They match そ and ん respectively. Look at more than just the long stroke.
ク has a diagonal stroke at the top left; ワ has a short vertical stroke there. Read them as く and わ respectively.
Like hiragana, katakana represent sounds. Don’t guess their meanings as if they were kanji; first, read each character aloud.
コーヒー on a menu is a loanword meaning “coffee.” Katakana are often used to write loanwords.
アメリカ on a map means the United States. Foreign place names are also often written in katakana.
Foreign people’s names and product names often use katakana too. When you see them, start by noticing the shapes of the characters.
Try reading アメリカ: ア・メ・リ・カ matches あ・め・り・か. Put the sounds together to pronounce the word.
ヲ in the chart matches を. In modern Japanese, it is usually pronounced like オ. Different shapes can have the same sound.
ン matches ん and is a nasal sound. Don’t add a full vowel after it when reading, and don’t confuse it with ソ.
Look at the first two charts again. Cover the hiragana and try reading. If you’re unsure of a character, uncover its matching sound and practice again.