Dakuten and Handakuten: The Japanese Accent Marks That Change Everything

You have spent hours drilling hiragana and katakana. You can read か, さ, た, and は without hesitation. Then you open a Japanese text and encounter が, ざ, だ, and ぱ — the same characters, but with tiny marks attached. Suddenly, nothing looks familiar.

Do not panic. Those tiny marks — called dakuten (濁点・だくてん) and handakuten (半濁点・はんだくてん) — are one of the most logical, rule-based parts of the Japanese writing system. Once you understand them, you will have unlocked an extra 50+ characters without learning a single new symbol from scratch.

This guide walks you through everything: what the marks mean, how they change sounds, how to write and type them, and how to avoid the most common mistakes English speakers make.

At a Glance

Mark	Name	Shape	What it does	Rows affected	Characters created
゛	Dakuten (濁点)	Two small diagonal strokes	Voices the consonant (unvoiced → voiced)	k, s, t, h rows	20 hiragana + 20 katakana
゜	Handakuten (半濁点)	Small circle	Semi-voices the consonant (h → p)	h row only	5 hiragana + 5 katakana

What Is Dakuten? Understanding Voiced Sounds

The dakuten (゛) looks like a small quotation mark — two short diagonal strokes placed at the top-right corner of a character. In Japanese, it is sometimes called ten-ten (てんてん) in informal speech, which literally means “dot dot.”

What does it actually do to a sound? It converts an unvoiced consonant into a voiced consonant.

Here is a quick explanation of voicing for English speakers: put your fingers lightly on your throat and say “s.” You should feel almost no vibration. Now say “z.” Feel that buzz? That vibration is your vocal cords activating — that is what “voiced” means. Dakuten triggers exactly the same shift in Japanese consonants.

The Four Rows Affected by Dakuten

Dakuten only works on four specific rows of the Japanese syllabary. Here are all the transformations, with both hiragana and katakana:

K-row → G-row (か行 → が行)

Unvoiced	Hiragana	Voiced	Hiragana	Unvoiced	Katakana	Voiced	Katakana
ka	か	ga	が	ka	カ	ga	ガ
ki	き	gi	ぎ	ki	キ	gi	ギ
ku	く	gu	ぐ	ku	ク	gu	グ
ke	け	ge	げ	ke	ケ	ge	ゲ
ko	こ	go	ご	ko	コ	go	ゴ

S-row → Z-row (さ行 → ざ行)

Unvoiced	Hiragana	Voiced	Hiragana	Unvoiced	Katakana	Voiced	Katakana
sa	さ	za	ざ	sa	サ	za	ザ
shi	し	ji	じ	shi	シ	ji	ジ
su	す	zu	ず	su	ス	zu	ズ
se	せ	ze	ぜ	se	セ	ze	ゼ
so	そ	zo	ぞ	so	ソ	zo	ゾ

T-row → D-row (た行 → だ行)

Unvoiced	Hiragana	Voiced	Hiragana	Unvoiced	Katakana	Voiced	Katakana
ta	た	da	だ	ta	タ	da	ダ
chi	ち	ji*	ぢ	chi	チ	ji*	ヂ
tsu	つ	zu*	づ	tsu	ツ	zu*	ヅ
te	て	de	で	te	テ	de	デ
to	と	do	ど	to	ト	do	ド

* ぢ and づ are explained in detail in the Common Mistakes section below.

H-row → B-row (は行 → ば行)

Unvoiced	Hiragana	Voiced	Hiragana	Unvoiced	Katakana	Voiced	Katakana
ha	は	ba	ば	ha	ハ	ba	バ
hi	ひ	bi	び	hi	ヒ	bi	ビ
fu	ふ	bu	ぶ	fu	フ	bu	ブ
he	へ	be	べ	he	ヘ	be	ベ
ho	ほ	bo	ぼ	ho	ホ	bo	ボ

What Is Handakuten? The Circle That Creates P-sounds

The handakuten (゜) is a small open circle placed at the top-right corner of a character. The word han (半) means “half,” so handakuten literally means “half-voiced mark” — it sits between a fully unvoiced and a fully voiced sound.

The handakuten is more limited than the dakuten: it only applies to the h-row (は行), transforming those sounds into p-sounds. The p-sound is called semi-voiced because it uses lip closure (like b) but without the vocal cord vibration.

H-row → P-row (は行 → ぱ行)

Unvoiced	Hiragana	Semi-voiced	Hiragana	Unvoiced	Katakana	Semi-voiced	Katakana
ha	は	pa	ぱ	ha	ハ	pa	パ
hi	ひ	pi	ぴ	hi	ヒ	pi	ピ
fu	ふ	pu	ぷ	fu	フ	pu	プ
he	へ	pe	ぺ	he	ヘ	pe	ペ
ho	ほ	po	ぽ	ho	ホ	po	ポ

Quick tip for recognizing p-sounds: In katakana, p-sounds appear constantly in loanwords. Think ピアノ (piano), プール (pool), パソコン (personal computer), ポケット (pocket). If you see a katakana character with a small circle, it is always a p-sound.

How to Write Dakuten and Handakuten

Stroke Order and Handwriting

When writing by hand, both marks are added after the base character is complete. Treat them as separate strokes.

• Dakuten (゛): Write the base character first. Then add two short diagonal strokes at the top-right corner, going from upper-left to lower-right. The strokes should be small — roughly a quarter of the character’s height. Think of writing a tiny quotation mark.
• Handakuten (゜): Write the base character first. Then draw a small open circle at the top-right corner in a single counterclockwise stroke. Keep it small and distinct — it should look like a degree symbol (°), not a full-sized circle.

Common Handwriting Mistakes

• Dakuten too large: If your ten-ten strokes are too long or bold, the character becomes hard to read at a glance. Keep them small and light.
• Handakuten looks like dakuten: A closed circle (○) drawn with two strokes can look like a sloppy dakuten. Practice making the handakuten a clean, round open loop.
• Wrong position: Both marks always go in the top-right corner. Placing them on the left or bottom is a common beginner error.
• Forgetting the mark entirely: In fast handwriting, dakuten are easy to skip. Native Japanese writers never omit them — always double-check your work.

Typing Dakuten and Handakuten on a Keyboard

The good news: you never need to add dakuten or handakuten manually when typing. Japanese input methods (IME) handle this automatically. Just type the romanization and select the correct character.

Character you want	Type (romaji input)	Result
が	ga	が
ざ	za	ざ
だ	da	だ
ば	ba	ば
ぱ	pa	ぱ
ぎ	gi	ぎ
じ	ji or zi	じ
ず	zu	ず
づ	du or dzu	づ

On a smartphone using the flick input (フリック入力) method, voiced characters are accessed by swiping left on the base character. Many learners find flick input for voiced sounds very intuitive once they know the base characters well.

Common Pronunciation Mistakes English Speakers Make

The じ vs ぢ and ず vs づ Problem

This is one of the most frequently asked questions about dakuten. Here is the rule in plain terms:

Sound	Standard spelling	ぢ/づ is used when…	Example
ji	じ	The word is a compound where the base word has ち	はなぢ (鼻血, nosebleed) ← 血 (chi)
zu	ず	The word is a compound where the base word has つ	つづく (続く, to continue) ← 続 (tsu-)

In all other cases, write じ for “ji” and ず for “zu.” As a beginner, do not stress about this distinction. Learn words as vocabulary items and the correct spelling will come naturally over time.

Mistake 1 — Over-voicing the G-sound

English speakers tend to pronounce が as a strong, hard “ga” — like the “g” in “gap.” In Japanese, the g-sound is slightly softer. In the middle of a word, it can even become a nasal sound similar to the “ng” in “sing.” This is called bigo (鼻濁音) and appears in certain dialects and formal speech. For now, just avoid making the g-sound too explosive.

Mistake 2 — Treating ざ, じ, ず, ぜ, ぞ as English Z-sounds

Japanese ざ is not the same as the English “za” in “pizza.” The Japanese z-sound is produced with the tongue touching the gum ridge, similar to “dz” — a short, stopped sound before the vowel. So ざ sounds closer to “dza” than the smooth English “z.” This is subtle, and native speakers will still understand you if you use an English z, but training your ear and mouth to hear the difference will help your pronunciation accuracy.

Mistake 3 — Forgetting to Read the Mark At All

When reading quickly, beginners sometimes skim past the dakuten and read the unvoiced version of the character. This can completely change meaning. For example:

• きって (切手, stamp) becomes completely different if read as ぎって — confusion like this is easy when reading fast
• さくら (桜, cherry blossom) vs ざくら — ざくら appears in compound words (e.g., よざくら, night cherry blossoms), so reading the mark correctly matters

Train yourself to scan the top-right corner of every character as a habit.

Minimal Pairs Practice: How Dakuten Changes Meaning

The clearest way to see why dakuten matters is through minimal pairs — word pairs that differ only in one sound. Study these carefully and practice saying them aloud:

Word A	Reading	Meaning	Word B	Reading	Meaning
かき	kaki	oyster / persimmon	がき	gaki	brat (child, informal)
かみ	kami	god / hair / paper	がみ	gami	paper (suffix in compound words, e.g. 折り紙)
さか	saka	slope	ざか	zaka	(suffix in place names, e.g. 坂 in 大坂)
しろ	shiro	white / castle	じろ	jiro	a person’s name (次郎)
すき	suki	to like / gap	ずき	zuki	throb (as in headache)
たな	tana	shelf	だな	dana	right? / isn’t it? (sentence-ending)
てら	tera	temple	でら	dera	temple (suffix in compound words)
はな	hana	nose / flower	ばな	bana	(suffix in words like ことばな)
はこ	hako	box	ばこ	bako	box (suffix in compound words, e.g. 本箱)
ほし	hoshi	star / dried (food)	ぼし	boshi	hat (帽子, boshi)
はく	haku	to wear (below waist) / to vomit	ばく	baku	tapir / explosion
かく	kaku	to write / each	がく	gaku	music / learning / amount of money

Practice tip: Cover the right half of the table and try to recall the voiced version of each word. Then switch and recall the unvoiced. Doing this out loud — not just visually — builds the muscle memory your mouth needs.

Reading Practice: A Short Paragraph

Read the following short paragraph aloud. Pay close attention to every dakuten and handakuten. A vocabulary guide follows below.

きのう、ともだちと ぎんざ に いきました。でも、でんしゃ が おくれて、ずいぶん まちました。えきの まえ に おおきい がっこう が あります。そこで こどもたちが げんきに あそんでいました。ぼくは びっくりしました。それから、ふたりで ばんごはん を たべました。とても おいしかったです。

Word	Reading	Meaning	Dakuten/Handakuten?
ともだち	tomodachi	friend	だ (d)
ぎんざ	Ginza	Ginza (district in Tokyo)	ぎ (g), ざ (z)
でも	demo	but	で (d)
でんしゃ	densha	train	で (d)
おくれて	okurete	was late	none
ずいぶん	zuibun	quite a lot	ず (z)
がっこう	gakkou	school	が (g)
こどもたち	kodomotachi	children	ど (d)
げんき	genki	energetic	げ (g)
ぼく	boku	I (male, casual)	ぼ (b)
びっくり	bikkuri	surprised	び (b)
ばんごはん	bangohan	dinner	ば (b), ご (g)

Translation: Yesterday, I went to Ginza with a friend. But the train was late and we waited quite a while. There is a big school in front of the station. Children were playing there energetically. I was surprised. After that, the two of us ate dinner. It was very delicious.

Decision Flowchart: Identifying Voiced vs Unvoiced When Reading

When you encounter an unfamiliar character, use this mental checklist:

You see a hiragana or katakana character
        |
        v
Does it have a mark in the top-right corner?
        |
    YES / \ NO
       /   \
      v     v
Is the mark    Read the base sound
two strokes    as-is (unvoiced).
or a circle?   No change needed.
      |
  Two strokes = Dakuten (゛)
      |
      v
Which row is the base character from?
  か-row? --> Read as G-sound (が, ぎ, ぐ, げ, ご)
  さ-row? --> Read as Z-sound (ざ, じ, ず, ぜ, ぞ)
  た-row? --> Read as D-sound (だ, ぢ, づ, で, ど)
  は-row? --> Read as B-sound (ば, び, ぶ, べ, ぼ)
      |
  Circle = Handakuten (゜)
      |
      v
Base character is always from は-row
  --> Read as P-sound (ぱ, ぴ, ぷ, ぺ, ぽ)

Quick Quiz

Test yourself! Read each character or word and write down the romanization and meaning (for vocabulary words). Answers are below.

1. What sound does ぞ represent?
2. What sound does ぴ represent?
3. Which mark would you add to き to make ぎ?
4. Read this word: ぼうし. What does it mean? (Hint: it is clothing for your head.)
5. What is the difference in meaning between すき and ずき?
6. True or false: ぢ and じ are pronounced differently in modern standard Japanese.
7. Read this word: でんわ. What does it mean?
8. Add the correct mark to change ふ into ぷ. What mark is it, and what is the resulting sound?

Quiz Answers

1. zo (the z-sound equivalent of そ/so)
2. pi (the p-sound equivalent of ひ/hi)
3. Dakuten (゛) — the two small diagonal strokes
4. ぼうし (帽子) — a hat or cap; reading: bou-shi
5. すき (suki) means “to like” or “a gap”; ずき (zuki) means a throbbing sensation (like a headache)
6. False — in modern standard Japanese, ぢ and じ are both pronounced “ji.” The difference is orthographic (spelling), not phonetic.
7. でんわ (電話, denwa) — telephone
8. Handakuten (゜) — the small circle. The result is ぷ, pronounced “pu.”

Which voiced sound do you find hardest to pronounce — the z-row, the d-row, or the p-sounds? Let us know in the comments! If you have a question about a specific word that uses dakuten or handakuten, drop it below and we will help you out.

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Keep Learning

Now that you understand voiced and semi-voiced sounds, these articles will help you strengthen your overall reading and pronunciation foundation:

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— **Editor notes**: – Internal links verified via WP API: hiragana-learning-strategy (65328, published), katakana-learning-strategy (65330, published), japanese-pronunciation-silent-vowels (65206, published). All three are live. – The minimal pairs table includes some compound-suffix uses (e.g., ばこ, ばし) alongside standalone words. This is intentional — it shows learners how voiced/unvoiced contrasts appear in compound-word construction, which is extremely common in Japanese. – The ぢ/づ vs じ/ず section is kept concise because this topic has enough complexity to merit its own article in the future. – The bigo (鼻濁音) note is flagged briefly for advanced interest without going deep — appropriate for a beginner article. – Word count estimate: approximately 2,700 words in body prose + tables.

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About the Author

Daisuke is the creator of JP YoKoSo — a Japanese learning site for English speakers. Every article is written to explain Japanese clearly, with real examples, grammar notes, and practical tips for learners at every level.

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