Prior to learning new words, or learn how to say various Japanese
phrases, it is logical to learn how to use the Japanese
pronunciation. Otherwise it would take longer to learn new words
because you do not have an exact idea of what it should sound like.
Kindly note that Wi and We have been added to this list (Feb 14,
2020) and they are considered obsolete. The reason why we added
this was for linguistic purposes as some old texts may contain Wi
and We (Now i い and e え).
This is a vital step in learning Japanese and may take a few days
before getting accustomed to the basics, but it is highly important
to practice it until you feel comfortable on the general use of the
pronunciations.
Pronunciation Chart
In the chart below, you will see various possible pronunciations in
the Japanese language. Please click on the Play button and repeat each character.
Please follow along with the following audio files:
Update
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Alternatively you can download the audio files at the bottom of the
lesson (Under Lesson Homework / Extras)
SEION
K
S
T
N
H
M
Y
R
W
N
A
KA
SA
TA
NA
HA
MA
YA
RA
WA
N
I
KI
SHI
CHI
NI
HI
MI
RI
WI
(Obsolete)
U
KU
SU
TSU
NU
HU
MU
YU
RU
E
KE
SE
TE
NE
HE
ME
RE
WE
(Obsolete)
O
KO
SO
TO
NO
HO
MO
YO
RO
Wo
DAKUON
A
GA
ZA
DA
BA
PA
I
GI
JI
JI
BI
PI
U
GU
ZU
DU
BU
PU
E
GE
ZE
DE
BE
PE
O
GO
ZO
DO
BO
PO
YOON
A
KYA
SHA
CHA
NYA
HYA
MYA
RYA
GYA
JA
BYA
PYA
U
KYU
SHU
CHU
NYU
HYU
MYU
RYU
GYU
JU
BYU
PYU
O
KYO
SHO
CHO
NYO
HYO
MYO
RYO
GYO
JO
BYO
PYO
Vowels in Japanese
Practice each of these out loud individually for a minute and then
proceed to the next vowel. Try practicing your pronunciation
every day by speaking in Japanese!
VOWEL
SOUNDS LIKE
A
Father
I
Eternal / Easter
U
Fruit / Hoop
E
Bed / Thread
O
Open / Cope / Hope
Monographs and Diacritics
As you may have noticed, there are Monographs and diagraphs in the pronunciation chart. In a
full Hiragana / Katakana chart, the separation becomes even
greater.
Monographs are the very basic characters of Hiragana. This includes
the vowels “A, I, U, E, O” and the gojuuon characters. At a later time, we
will learn how to write all of Hiragana and Katakana where we'll
learn more about this subject.
The basic pronunciation chart should be reviewed and practiced
daily along with your pick on Japanese words. As reference, there
is a link to the Wikipedia IPA of the Japanese
pronunciation.
Practice the Following
ENGLISH
ROMAJI
HIRAGANA
Blue
Ao
あお
Red
Aka
あか
Green
Midori
みどり
Black
Kuro
くろ
White
Shiro
しろ
Onwards to the next Lesson
That’s it for this lesson! When you are ready, you may continue to
the next lesson! Be sure to see the Wikipedia IPA guide if you
understand how to use it.