Practice Hiragana & Katakana

Choose the kana you're learning, type what you see, and keep your streak alive. Free, fast, and no signup needed.

Hiragana

Main kana

Dakuon & handakuon

Combination kana

Katakana

Main kana

Dakuon & handakuon

Combination kana

No kana selected

What is hiragana?

Hiragana (ひらがな) is the core Japanese syllabary — 46 base characters that spell out native Japanese words, grammar particles, and word endings. Each character represents one syllable sound, like か (ka) or ね (ne). It's the first script Japanese children learn, and the best starting point for learners: once you can read hiragana, you can pronounce any Japanese word written in it.

What is katakana?

Katakana (カタカナ) covers the same sounds as hiragana with a different, more angular set of characters. Japanese uses it for loanwords like コーヒー (coffee), foreign names, onomatopoeia, and emphasis. Menus, signs, and product names lean heavily on katakana, so being able to read it quickly makes a huge difference in the real world.

How to learn the kana fast

Short, frequent practice beats long cram sessions. Pick one row of five characters, drill it until it feels automatic, then add the next row and mix them together. Typing the romaji — like this quiz has you do — builds recall, which is much stronger than just recognizing a character on a chart. A few five-minute rounds a day and most people can read every kana within a couple of weeks.