This cheat sheet covers the two main Japanese kana writing systems, hiragana and katakana, along with common greetings for beginning learners. Students need it because kana are the foundation for reading, writing, and speaking Japanese accurately. A clear reference helps students connect Japanese characters, sounds, and polite phrases without relying only on romaji.
It is designed for quick review during class, homework, and speaking practice.
Key Facts
- Hiragana is used for native Japanese words, grammar endings, and particles, such as は, を, and に.
- Katakana is used for foreign loanwords, foreign names, sound effects, and emphasis, such as コーヒー for coffee.
- Each basic kana usually represents one syllable sound, such as か = ka, き = ki, く = ku, け = ke, and こ = ko.
- The five Japanese vowel sounds are あ = a, い = i, う = u, え = e, and お = o.
- Dakuten marks change sounds, such as か = ka becoming が = ga and た = ta becoming だ = da.
- Small ゃ, ゅ, and ょ combine with i-row kana to make blended sounds, such as きゃ = kya, しゅ = shu, and ちょ = cho.
- A small っ marks a doubled consonant sound, such as がっこう = gakkou, meaning school.
- Common greetings include おはようございます = good morning, こんにちは = hello, こんばんは = good evening, and さようなら = goodbye.
Vocabulary
- Hiragana
- Hiragana is a Japanese syllabary used for native words, grammar, particles, and words without kanji.
- Katakana
- Katakana is a Japanese syllabary used for loanwords, foreign names, sound effects, and emphasis.
- Kana
- Kana are Japanese phonetic characters, including both hiragana and katakana.
- Romaji
- Romaji is Japanese written with the Roman alphabet to show pronunciation.
- Dakuten
- Dakuten are two small marks that change some kana sounds, such as k to g or s to z.
- Greeting
- A greeting is a polite word or phrase used when meeting, leaving, thanking, or apologizing to someone.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Mixing up hiragana and katakana is wrong because they have different main uses. Use hiragana for many native Japanese words and grammar, but use katakana for many loanwords and foreign names.
- Pronouncing Japanese vowels like English vowels is wrong because Japanese vowel sounds stay short and consistent. For example, い is always pronounced like i in machine, not like i in bike.
- Forgetting dakuten changes the word because one small mark can create a different sound. For example, か is ka, but が is ga.
- Writing こんにちは as konnichiha in meaning but pronouncing the final は as ha is wrong in this greeting. In こんにちは, the particle は is pronounced wa.
- Relying only on romaji slows reading progress because Japanese texts use kana and kanji. Use romaji as a temporary pronunciation guide, not as the main writing system.
Practice Questions
- 1 Write the romaji for these 5 hiragana: あ, い, う, え, お.
- 2 Match these 4 katakana to their romaji: カ, キ, ク, ケ.
- 3 Convert these 3 greetings to English: おはようございます, こんにちは, こんばんは.
- 4 Explain why a Japanese menu might use katakana for コーヒー but hiragana for a grammar particle like は.