The Core Consonant Rows of Hiragana
After the five vowels (あいうえお), the K, S, T, and N rows form the most essential consonant sounds in Japanese. Combined, these 20 characters give you the building blocks for hundreds of common words.
This guide covers all 20 characters with stroke counts, tips for the tricky ones, and real example words to build your reading vocabulary immediately.
K Row (か行): ka, ki, ku, ke, ko
| Hiragana | Romaji | Strokes | Tip | Example word |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| か | ka | 3 | Looks like a person kneeling. Two left-leaning strokes + curving right stroke. | かさ (kasa) = umbrella |
| き | ki | 4 | Two horizontal bars crossing a vertical, then a curving bottom stroke. Often mistaken for さ — き has TWO crossbars. | き (ki) = tree |
| く | ku | 1 | A single open V-shape angled to the right. Simple and fast to write. | くに (kuni) = country |
| け | ke | 3 | Three separate strokes — vertical, then two right-leaning strokes. | けさ (kesa) = this morning |
| こ | ko | 2 | Two horizontal strokes; the bottom one has a slight curve up at the end. | ここ (koko) = here |
S Row (さ行): sa, shi, su, se, so
Note: し (shi) is irregular — the sound is “shi”, not “si”.
| Hiragana | Romaji | Strokes | Tip | Example word |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| さ | sa | 2 | A horizontal bar then a long sweeping stroke going right and looping under. ONE crossbar (き has two). | さかな (sakana) = fish |
| し | shi | 1 | One smooth stroke: down, then curve right like a fishhook. Very simple. | しお (shio) = salt |
| す | su | 2 | A vertical with a loop at the bottom that swings left. The loop hangs below like a tail. | すし (sushi) = sushi |
| せ | se | 3 | Three strokes forming a shape like a “T” with a curving right arm. | せんせい (sensei) = teacher |
| そ | so | 1 or 2 | An “S”-shaped stroke going right. Can be written as one flowing curve or two strokes. | そら (sora) = sky |
T Row (た行): ta, chi, tsu, te, to
The T row has two irregular sounds: ち (chi) and つ (tsu).
| Hiragana | Romaji | Strokes | Tip | Example word |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| た | ta | 4 | Four strokes: horizontal, crossed vertical, then two small bottom strokes. | たべる (taberu) = to eat |
| ち | chi | 2 | Short top stroke + a large clockwise loop going right and down. Looks like a 5 drawn loosely. | ちず (chizu) = map |
| つ | tsu | 1 | One quick stroke: start upper-right, sweep left-down, then curl right. Like a large comma. | つくえ (tsukue) = desk |
| て | te | 1 | One flowing stroke: horizontal, drop down, then curve right and up. | てがみ (tegami) = letter |
| と | to | 2 | A vertical stroke with a small “stab” mark on the right side. | ともだち (tomodachi) = friend |
N Row (な行): na, ni, nu, ne, no
| Hiragana | Romaji | Strokes | Tip | Example word |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| な | na | 4 | Four strokes. The last one makes a loop on the right — careful not to confuse with た. | なつ (natsu) = summer |
| に | ni | 3 | Vertical stroke, horizontal extending right, then a separate bottom stroke going right. | にく (niku) = meat |
| ぬ | nu | 2 | A loop that exits to the right. Often confused with め — ぬ’s loop exits on the RIGHT; め’s loop stays more internal. | いぬ (inu) = dog |
| ね | ne | 2 | Two strokes; the second crosses and forms a small closed loop in the centre. Looks like a pretzel. | ねこ (neko) = cat |
| の | no | 1 | One stroke: a simple open oval/loop going counterclockwise. Very easy to remember. | の is also the possessive particle: わたしのほん = my book |
Vocabulary Practice: K, S, T, N Words
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| すきです | suki desu | I like (it) |
| たのしい | tanoshii | fun, enjoyable |
| ちかてつ | chikatetsu | subway |
| なんさい | nan sai | how old? |
| きのした | ki no shita | under the tree |
| てんき | tenki | weather |
| にほんご | nihongo | Japanese language |
| そつぎょう | sotsugyou | graduation |
Quick Self-Test
Without looking, write the hiragana for:
- “ki” (tree)
- “shi” (death — also used in many harmless words)
- “tsu” (as in tsunami)
- “ne” (sound, also used as a sentence-final particle)
- “no” (possessive particle)
Answers: 1. き / 2. し / 3. つ / 4. ね / 5. の
Yuka & Rei Drill the Core Hiragana Rows
Learning kana feels abstract until you see how real learners talk about it. Here is Yuka working through the tricky parts — and Rei making the explanations click. Their questions are probably the same ones you have.
YukaRei, I’m learning the か、さ、た、な rows. They feel like the most important ones. Am I right?
ReiYes! These four rows cover the most frequent consonant sounds in Japanese. か row: か き く け こ. さ row: さ し す せ そ. た row: た ち つ て と — note that ち and つ are irregular (chi, tsu, not ti/tu!). な row: な に ぬ ね の.
YukaWhy are ち and つ irregular? It seems unfair!
ReiHistorical phonology! Old Japanese had different sounds that shifted over time. The spelling system froze before the shifts completed. ち is in the た row but sounds like ‘chi’, and つ sounds like ‘tsu’. Just memorise these four exceptions: ち (chi), つ (tsu), し (shi), ふ (fu). Everything else is regular.
5 Practice Examples — Read These Aloud
These examples use the characters from this article in real words. Say each one aloud and try to recall the article’s rules as you read.
- か き く け こ — ka ki ku ke ko (the か row)
- さ し す せ そ — sa SHI su se so (し is irregular: ‘shi’)
- た ち つ て と — ta CHI TSU te to (ち and つ are irregular)
- な に ぬ ね の — na ni nu ne no (fully regular)
- ちかてつ (chikatetsu) — subway / underground train (uses ち and つ)
Your Turn! Write Your Own Example in the Comments
The fastest way to remember kana is to write words you already know in Japanese script. Try writing your name, your hometown, or your favourite food using the characters from this article.
Share what you wrote in the comments — other learners will see it, and writing for an audience makes the learning stick twice as fast. Log in to save your comment history and join the Top Commenters ranking!
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