Hiragana Learning for absolute beginners

Japanese 日本語
1

I did a youtube search for Hiragana learning, and I found the result a bit frustrating. They usually go through the 46 letters. I have no idea how to memorize them. being a big fan of flash cards (I use ANKI), I let ChatGPT help me come up with a useful order of hiragana signs in steps of 5, each block followed by example vocabulary, a list of same length. I would appreciate any feedback, and feel free to use the list yourself.

Step 1: Vowels (5 characters)
あ (a)
い (i)
う (u)
え (e)
お (o)

Example words:

  • あい (ai) – Love
  • いえ (ie) – House
  • あお (ao) – Blue
  • いう (iu) – Say
  • おい (oi) – Nephew

Step 2: K-row (5 characters)
か (ka)
き (ki)
く (ku)
け (ke)
こ (ko)

Example words:

  • かお (kao) – Face
  • きく (kiku) – Listen
  • くい (kui) – Stake
  • けい (kei) – Form
  • こい (koi) – Carp, Love

Step 3: S-row (5 characters)
さ (sa)
し (shi)
す (su)
せ (se)
そ (so)

Example words:

  • さけ (sake) – Alcohol
  • しお (shio) – Salt
  • すし (sushi) – Sushi
  • せかい (sekai) – World
  • そう (sou) – In this way

Step 4: T-row (5 characters)
た (ta)
ち (chi)
つ (tsu)
て (te)
と (to)

Example words:

  • たかい (takai) – High, Expensive
  • ちかい (chikai) – Near
  • つき (tsuki) – Moon
  • て (te) – Hand
  • とき (toki) – Time

Step 5: N-row (5 characters)
な (na)
に (ni)
ぬ (nu)
ね (ne)
の (no)

Example words:

  • なに (nani) – What
  • にほん (nihon) – Japan
  • ぬの (nuno) – Cloth
  • ねこ (neko) – Cat
  • のみ (nomi) – Flea

Step 6: H-row (5 characters)
は (ha)
ひ (hi)
ふ (fu)
へ (he)
ほ (ho)

Example words:

  • はは (haha) – Mother
  • ひと (hito) – Person
  • ふね (fune) – Boat
  • へや (heya) – Room
  • ほし (hoshi) – Star

Step 7: M-row (5 characters)
ま (ma)
み (mi)
む (mu)
め (me)
も (mo)

Example words:

  • まち (machi) – Town
  • みみ (mimi) – Ear
  • むし (mushi) – Insect
  • め (me) – Eye
  • もしもし (moshimoshi) – Hello (on the phone)

Step 8: Y-row (3 characters)
や (ya)
ゆ (yu)
よ (yo)

Example words:

  • やま (yama) – Mountain
  • ゆき (yuki) – Snow
  • よる (yoru) – Night

Step 9: R-row (5 characters)
ら (ra)
り (ri)
る (ru)
れ (re)
ろ (ro)

Example words:

  • らいねん (rainen) – Next Year
  • りんご (ringo) – Apple
  • るす (rusu) – Absence
  • れい (rei) – Example, Zero
  • ろうそく (rousoku) – Candle

Step 10: W-row and N (3 characters)
わ (wa)
を (wo) (nowadays usually pronounced as “o”)
ん (n)

Example words:

  • わたし (watashi) – I
  • を (wo/o) – Particle for the direct object
  • ほん (hon) – Book
1 Like
2

So interesting to see people using ChatGPT more and more for language learning!

When I learned hiragana previously (before the era of ChatGPT!), I had two methods:

  1. Paper flashcards that I made myself and would flick through a few times a weeks (helps to avoid screen fatigue/online distractions and notifications)

  2. Apps that help me practice writing hiragana (and katakana) in a repetitive flashcard style - there are a few free ones available online. Good for practicing on the go and actually writing the characters (helps with memorization)

I think when it comes to learning hiragana and katakana, it’s hard to get around the need for lots and lots of repetition - but apps and flashcards can make it a little more interesting at least :slight_smile:

:point_right: There’s also this blog that goes into the three writing systems (hiragana, katakana and kanji) that features videos talking about how to learn them! Japanese Alphabet {Hiragana, Katakana & Kanji} // Why Three?

3

I just play these games until I feel confident. I feel it’s a little more entertaining than Anki. https://drlingua.com/

4

Hi Nathan, thanks for sharing your resource and welcome to the forum.

Please be aware to not spam our threads with links. As this is relevant we will allow it, but this isn’t a place to list resources in order to gain backlinks.

Best wishes and enjoy using the forum :slight_smile: