Japanese has five pure vowels, equal beats, a tapped r, whispered vowels in です and ます, and pitch accent in place of stress. Say every kana as one beat of the same length, with a short, pure vowel: さ・く・ら
Summary
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| Point | Rule | Example | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vowels | Five short, pure vowels; they never glide. | あおい | blue | |
| Beats | One kana, one beat; ん, っ and a long vowel add beats. | と・う・きょ・う | Tokyo | |
| The r | The ら row is a single quick tap of the tongue. | くるま | car | |
| ふ, つ | ふ is air between the lips; つ is /ts/ plus /ɯ/. | ふゆ / つき | winter / moon | |
| Whispered vowels | The u of です and ます, and an i or u between voiceless sounds, are whispered. | コーヒーを飲みます。 | I drink coffee. | |
| ん | ん takes the nasal sound of what follows and keeps one beat. | えんぴつ | pencil | |
| Pitch | Pitch, not loudness, tells words apart; after a fall it does not rise again. | 雨 / あめ | rain / candy | |
| Patterns | Four patterns: high first, flat, high in the middle, high at the end. | 橋が / はしが | the bridge / the edge | |
| Trap | A long vowel lasts two beats; shortened, it names another word. | おじいさん | grandfather | |
| Trap | No beat is louder: say さくら low, high, high. | さくら | cherry blossom |
The five vowels
Nothing in this section is at or below. It starts at A0.
| Sound | Kana | Example | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| /a/ | あ | あさ | morning | |
| /i/ | い | いし | stone | |
| /ɯ/ | う | うた | song | |
| /e/ | え | えき | station | |
| /o/ | お | おと | sound |
- Each vowel is short and pure: the mouth holds one shape and the sound does not glide.
- う is /ɯ/: the lips stay relaxed and do not round.
- Two vowels in a row stay two beats, not one glide: あおい has three. あ・お・いblue
The mora
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- Japanese counts beats, called morae, not syllables: とうきょう has four. For the kana that write them, see Kana Sounds.
| Rule | Example | Beats | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Each kana is one beat. | さくら | さ・く・ら | cherry blossom | |
| A small ゃ, ゅ or ょ joins the kana before it. | きょう | きょ・う | today | |
| ん is a full beat. | ほん | ほ・ん | book | |
| A small っ is a full beat of silence. | きって | き・っ・て | stamp | |
| A long vowel lasts two beats. | おおきい | お・お・き・い | big |
Consonants
Nothing in this section is at or below. It starts at A0.
| Sound | Kana | Example | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| /ɾ/ | ら | くるま | car | |
| /ɸ/ | ふ | ふゆ | winter | |
| /ɕ/ | し | しお | salt | |
| /tɕ/ | ち | ちず | map | |
| /ts/ | つ | つき | moon | |
| /dʑ/ | じ | じかん | time |
- The ら row is one quick tap of the tongue tip behind the upper teeth: /ɾ/.
- ふ is /ɸ/: air passes between the lips, as when blowing out a candle.
- つ is /ts/ plus /ɯ/, and it can begin a word.
- し, ち and じ press the flat of the tongue against the palate: /ɕ/, /tɕ/, /dʑ/.
Devoiced vowels
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- A devoiced vowel is whispered: the mouth shapes it, but the voice does not sound.
- A whispered vowel keeps its beat: です still has two.
| Rule | Example | Sound | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The u of です is whispered. | 学生です。 | /desɯ̥/ | I am a student. | |
| The u of ます is whispered. | 食べます。 | /tabemasɯ̥/ | I eat. | |
| An i or u between two voiceless sounds is whispered. | 聞く | /ki̥kɯ/ | to listen | |
| An i or u next to a voiced sound keeps its voice. | 来ます。 | /kimasɯ̥/ | I come. |
The sounds of ん
Nothing in this section is at or below. It starts at A1.
| Rule | Example | Sound | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before p, b, m: /m/. | えんぴつ | /empitsɯ/ | pencil | |
| Before t, d, n, r, s, z: /n/. | 先生 | /senseː/ | teacher | |
| Before k, g: /ŋ/. | りんご | /riŋɡo/ | apple | |
| At the end of a word, or before a vowel, y, w or h: /ɴ/. | 本 | /hoɴ/ | book |
- The change is automatic: ん follows the next sound and always lasts one beat.
Pitch accent
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- Japanese marks words by pitch, high and low, not by a louder syllable.
- The first two beats differ: if the first is low, the second is high, and the reverse.
- After the pitch falls, it does not rise again inside the word.
- In the transcriptions, /˥/ is high and /˩/ is low; the pitch is that of Tokyo.
| Pattern | Example | Pitch | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| あたまだか (high at the start): high first, then low. | 雨が | /a˥me˩ga˩/ | rain | |
| へいばん (flat): low, then high to the end; the particle stays high. | 友達が | /to˩mo˥da˥tɕi˥ga˥/ | friend | |
| なかだか (high in the middle): low, high, then a fall inside the word. | 先生が | /se˩n˥se˥i˩ga˩/ | teacher | |
| おだか (high at the end): low, then high to the end; the particle falls. | 橋が | /ha˩si˥ga˩/ | bridge | |
| The same sounds, a different pitch, a different word. | 雨 / あめ | /a˥me˩/ /a˩me˥/ | rain / candy | |
| A particle shows the difference when the word alone sounds the same. | 橋が / はしが | /ha˩si˥ga˩/ /ha˩si˥ga˥/ | the bridge / the edge |
Typical errors
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| Wrong | Right | Rule | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| おじさん | おじいさん | a long vowel is two beats: shortened, おじいさん (“grandfather”) becomes おじさん (“uncle”) | |
| /kɯɹɯma/ | /kɯɾɯma/ | the r of the ら row is a tap of the tongue tip, not the English /ɹ/ | |
| /fɯ/ | /ɸɯ/ | ふ is /ɸ/ with both lips: the teeth do not touch the lip | |
| /ohajoʊ/ | /ohajoː/ | the vowel of おはよう stays pure and long, /oː/, not the English glide /oʊ/ | |
| /saˈkɯɾa/ | /sa˩kɯ˥ɾa˥/ | pitch, not loudness, marks the word: さくら is low, high, high |
Start over
HiraganaThe 46 basic hiragana, one sound each, set out in a table of five vowels and ten rows.Start over
HiraganaThe 46 basic hiragana, one sound each, set out in a table of five vowels and ten rows.