Japanese/Kana/Lessons/Katakana/Lesson 5

< Japanese‎ | Kana

Hiragana: [ a ] [ ka ] [ sa ] [ ta ] [ na ] [ ha ] [ ma ] [ ya ] [ ra ] [ wa, wo, n ] [ ゐ and ゑ (ancient hiragana in disuse) ]
Katakana: [ a ] [ ka ] [ sa ] [ ta ] [ na ] [ ha ] [ ma ] [ ya ] [ ra ] [ wa, wo, n ] [ ヰ and ヱ (ancient katakana in disuse) ]

In this lesson you are going to learn how to read and write ナ、ニ、ヌ、ネ、ノ.

Brush Stroke:
Sound:

na

Mnemonic:
  • That nail didn't go in straight.
  • Napa cabbage soup with spoon to the side and spices on top.
  • Nah - you started drawing one character, then you changed your mind and crossed it out.
Example:
  • ナイジェリア (naijeria) Nigeria
  • ナース (naasu) nurse
  • ナイフ (naifu) knife
Brush Stroke:
Sound:

ni

Mnemonic:
  • Needle - Two needles, laid parallel.
Example:
  • ニブル (niburu) nibble
  • ニッケル (nikkeru) nickel
  • ニット (nitto) knit
Brush Stroke:
Sound:

nu

Mnemonic:
  • New - You need a new (nu) boat after piercing the hull.
  • Noodles handing over the side of a bowl of soup.
Example:
  • ヌード (nuudo) nude
  • ヌードル (nuudoru) noodle
  • ヌル (nuru) null
Brush Stroke:
Sound:

ne

Mnemonic:
  • Nest - Half of a bird's nest, suspended on a pole.
  • Neko soup, for cats, not of cats, with the cat tongue on top, paw to the side, and tail curled under.
Example:
  • ネオン (neon) neon
  • ネクタイ (nekutai) necktie
  • ネスト (nesuto) nest
Brush Stroke:
Sound:

no

Mnemonic:
  • No more - You mark an item off of a list with a single stroke.
  • A wave, with a mark to indicate the strength. ノ = no wave. ソ = soft wave. ツ = tsunami
Example:
  • ノルウェー (noruuee) Norway
  • ノート (nooto) notebook
  • ノッチ (nocchi) notch