The sounds of Japanese
Reading Japanese, sign by sign.
Five vowels, simple syllables and two syllabaries in which every sign is always read the same way. A few rules about length are then enough to read anything written in kana correctly.
あ
aあさ
The sounds
The signs to know
Choose a group, then a sign. Listen to it in common words, at normal speed or slowly.
Sound
Reading rules
What lengthens, doubles or changes a sound.
おばあさん
Long vowels
A long vowel lasts two beats, and length changes the meaning: おばさん (obasan, aunt) is not おばあさん (obāsan, grandmother). In rōmaji, a macron marks it: ā, ō, ū.
きって
Double consonants: っ
The small っ is not pronounced on its own: it marks a short pause, and the next consonant is doubled. きって (kitte, stamp) is not きて (kite, come).
わたしは
The particles は, を, へ
Used as particles, は is read wa, を is read o and へ is read e: わたしは (watashi wa), みずを (mizu o), にほんへ (nihon e).
です
Silent vowels
Between two voiceless consonants or at the end of a sentence, i and u are barely heard: です sounds almost like “dess”, すき almost like “ski”.
はし
Pitch accent
All syllables have the same length, but some are said higher than others. In standard Japanese, はし “chopsticks” is high on ha, はし “bridge” rises on shi.
Reading