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Katakana Chart: Complete Guide with Pronunciation

The katakana chart is one of the first things you learn in Japanese — and for good reason. Katakana is one of three writing systems in Japanese, used mainly for foreign loanwords, brand names, and sound effects. Once you know the 46 basic characters, you can sound out thousands of English-origin words written in Japanese.

Basic Katakana (46 Characters)

The complete katakana chart, grouped by row. Each character pairs with its hiragana equivalent and pronunciation.

Japanese	Reading	Romaji	English
ア	あ	a	like the 'a' in 'father'
イ	い	i	like the 'ee' in 'feet'
ウ	う	u	like the 'oo' in 'food' (short)
エ	え	e	like the 'e' in 'bed'
オ	お	o	like the 'o' in 'go'
カ	か	ka	like 'ca' in 'car'
キ	き	ki	like 'key'
ク	く	ku	like 'coo' in 'cool'
ケ	け	ke	like 'ke' in 'kept'
コ	こ	ko	like 'co' in 'coat'
サ	さ	sa	like 'sa' in 'saga'
シ	し	shi	like 'she'
ス	す	su	like 'su' in 'suit'
セ	せ	se	like 'se' in 'set'
ソ	そ	so	like 'so' in 'so long'
タ	た	ta	like 'ta' in 'taco'
チ	ち	chi	like 'chee' in 'cheese'
ツ	つ	tsu	like 'tsu' in 'tsunami'
テ	て	te	like 'te' in 'ten'
ト	と	to	like 'to' in 'tone'
ナ	な	na	like 'na' in 'nap'
ニ	に	ni	like 'nee' in 'need'
ヌ	ぬ	nu	like 'nu' in 'nuke'
ネ	ね	ne	like 'ne' in 'net'
ノ	の	no	like 'no'
ハ	は	ha	like 'ha' in 'happy'
ヒ	ひ	hi	like 'he' in 'heat'
フ	ふ	fu	a soft 'fu', halfway between f and h
ヘ	へ	he	like 'he' in 'help'
ホ	ほ	ho	like 'ho' in 'hope'
マ	ま	ma	like 'ma' in 'mama'
ミ	み	mi	like 'me'
ム	む	mu	like 'moo' in 'moon'
メ	め	me	like 'me' in 'met'
モ	も	mo	like 'mo' in 'more'
ヤ	や	ya	like 'ya' in 'yard'
ユ	ゆ	yu	like 'you'
ヨ	よ	yo	like 'yo' in 'yoga'
ラ	ら	ra	a light 'ra', tongue flap like a soft d/l/r blend
リ	り	ri	a light 'ri', like a quick 'ree'
ル	る	ru	a light 'ru', like a quick 'roo'
レ	れ	re	a light 're', like a quick 'reh'
ロ	ろ	ro	a light 'ro', like a quick 'roh'
ワ	わ	wa	like 'wa' in 'water'
ヲ	を	wo/o	object particle; pronounced like 'o'
ン	ん	n	a standalone nasal 'n' sound

アあ

alike the 'a' in 'father'

イい

ilike the 'ee' in 'feet'

ウう

ulike the 'oo' in 'food' (short)

エえ

elike the 'e' in 'bed'

オお

olike the 'o' in 'go'

カか

kalike 'ca' in 'car'

キき

kilike 'key'

クく

kulike 'coo' in 'cool'

ケけ

kelike 'ke' in 'kept'

コこ

kolike 'co' in 'coat'

サさ

salike 'sa' in 'saga'

シし

shilike 'she'

スす

sulike 'su' in 'suit'

セせ

selike 'se' in 'set'

ソそ

solike 'so' in 'so long'

タた

talike 'ta' in 'taco'

チち

chilike 'chee' in 'cheese'

ツつ

tsulike 'tsu' in 'tsunami'

テて

telike 'te' in 'ten'

トと

tolike 'to' in 'tone'

ナな

nalike 'na' in 'nap'

ニに

nilike 'nee' in 'need'

ヌぬ

nulike 'nu' in 'nuke'

ネね

nelike 'ne' in 'net'

ノの

nolike 'no'

ハは

halike 'ha' in 'happy'

ヒひ

hilike 'he' in 'heat'

フふ

fua soft 'fu', halfway between f and h

ヘへ

helike 'he' in 'help'

ホほ

holike 'ho' in 'hope'

マま

malike 'ma' in 'mama'

ミみ

milike 'me'

ムむ

mulike 'moo' in 'moon'

メめ

melike 'me' in 'met'

モも

molike 'mo' in 'more'

ヤや

yalike 'ya' in 'yard'

ユゆ

yulike 'you'

ヨよ

yolike 'yo' in 'yoga'

ラら

raa light 'ra', tongue flap like a soft d/l/r blend

リり

ria light 'ri', like a quick 'ree'

ルる

rua light 'ru', like a quick 'roo'

レれ

rea light 're', like a quick 'reh'

ロろ

roa light 'ro', like a quick 'roh'

ワわ

walike 'wa' in 'water'

ヲを

wo/oobject particle; pronounced like 'o'

ンん

na standalone nasal 'n' sound

Dakuten and Handakuten (ガ, パ, etc.)

Add two small marks (dakuten ゛) to voiceless consonants to get their voiced versions. The small circle (handakuten ゜) turns h-row characters into p-sounds.

Japanese	Reading	Romaji	English
ガ	が	ga	like 'ga' in 'garden'
ギ	ぎ	gi	like 'gi' in 'give'
グ	ぐ	gu	like 'gu' in 'guru'
ゲ	げ	ge	like 'ge' in 'get'
ゴ	ご	go	like 'go'
ザ	ざ	za	like 'za' in 'pizza'
ジ	じ	ji	like 'ji' in 'jeans'
ズ	ず	zu	like 'zu' in 'zoo'
ゼ	ぜ	ze	like 'ze' in 'zest'
ゾ	ぞ	zo	like 'zo' in 'zone'
ダ	だ	da	like 'da' in 'dark'
ヂ	ぢ	di	like 'ji' (same sound as ジ in modern Japanese)
ヅ	づ	du	like 'zu' (same sound as ズ in modern Japanese)
デ	で	de	like 'de' in 'desk'
ド	ど	do	like 'do' in 'dog'
バ	ば	ba	like 'ba' in 'bar'
ビ	び	bi	like 'bi' in 'bit'
ブ	ぶ	bu	like 'bu' in 'bull'
ベ	べ	be	like 'be' in 'bed'
ボ	ぼ	bo	like 'bo' in 'bone'
パ	ぱ	pa	like 'pa' in 'pasta'
ピ	ぴ	pi	like 'pee'
プ	ぷ	pu	like 'pu' in 'pool'
ペ	ぺ	pe	like 'pe' in 'pen'
ポ	ぽ	po	like 'po' in 'pole'

ガが

galike 'ga' in 'garden'

ギぎ

gilike 'gi' in 'give'

グぐ

gulike 'gu' in 'guru'

ゲげ

gelike 'ge' in 'get'

ゴご

golike 'go'

ザざ

zalike 'za' in 'pizza'

ジじ

jilike 'ji' in 'jeans'

ズず

zulike 'zu' in 'zoo'

ゼぜ

zelike 'ze' in 'zest'

ゾぞ

zolike 'zo' in 'zone'

ダだ

dalike 'da' in 'dark'

ヂぢ

dilike 'ji' (same sound as ジ in modern Japanese)

ヅづ

dulike 'zu' (same sound as ズ in modern Japanese)

デで

delike 'de' in 'desk'

ドど

dolike 'do' in 'dog'

バば

balike 'ba' in 'bar'

ビび

bilike 'bi' in 'bit'

ブぶ

bulike 'bu' in 'bull'

ベべ

belike 'be' in 'bed'

ボぼ

bolike 'bo' in 'bone'

パぱ

palike 'pa' in 'pasta'

ピぴ

pilike 'pee'

プぷ

pulike 'pu' in 'pool'

ペぺ

pelike 'pe' in 'pen'

ポぽ

polike 'po' in 'pole'

Combination Katakana (キャ, シュ, etc.)

Combination characters are formed by pairing an i-row character with a small ャ (ya), ュ (yu), or ョ (yo). They count as a single syllable. You will see these constantly in katakana loanwords: キャ (kya), シュ (shu), チョ (cho), ニュ (nyu), ヒャ (hya), ミョ (myo), リョ (ryo). Some common examples from daily life: ショッピング (shoppingu) = shopping, ニュース (nyuusu) = news, チョコレート (chokoreeto) = chocolate. The small kana is the key — if you see a tiny ュ, it blends with the character before it.

When Is Katakana Used?

Katakana shows up in four main situations. Foreign loanwords (gairaigo) are the biggest one: words borrowed from English and other languages are written in katakana. Think コーヒー (koohii = coffee), テレビ (terebi = TV), アイスクリーム (aisu kuriimu = ice cream). Foreign names and place names also get katakana: アメリカ (Amerika), マイケル (Maikeru). Sound effects and onomatopoeia in manga and anime often use katakana for extra punch — ドキドキ (dokidoki = heart pounding), バン (ban = bang). Finally, katakana is sometimes used for emphasis, similar to how English uses italics or ALL CAPS, to make a word pop on the page.

Tips for Learning Katakana

The best trick for katakana is to use your English vocabulary as a shortcut. Since so many katakana words are borrowed from English, once you can read the script you can decode a huge number of words instantly. Start by learning the 46 basics in small groups (5 per day works well). Then practice by reading katakana menus, product labels, or anime subtitles. A few characters trip people up repeatedly: ソ (so) vs ン (n), シ (shi) vs ツ (tsu), and ウ (u) vs ワ (wa). A memory trick: ツ looks like a wide smile showing teeth (tsu!), while シ looks more like a face turned sideways. Write each character by hand at least a few times — muscle memory is a real shortcut.

Common Questions About Katakana

How long does it take to learn katakana?

Most people can learn all 46 katakana characters in one to two weeks with daily practice. If you already know hiragana, katakana will feel familiar since the sounds are identical — only the shapes differ. Focused drilling for 10 to 15 minutes a day gets most learners reading basic katakana within a week.

Is katakana harder than hiragana?

Most learners find katakana slightly trickier than hiragana because the characters look more angular and similar to each other. Pairs like シ/ツ and ソ/ン are notorious for confusion. That said, the motivation boost from reading real loanwords (like コーヒー or アイスクリーム) makes katakana feel very rewarding once it clicks.

What is the long vowel mark (ー) in katakana?

The horizontal dash ー is called a chouonpu (long vowel mark) and it extends the previous vowel sound. コーヒー (koohii) = coffee, with two extended vowels. You will only see this mark in katakana, not hiragana. It is one of the small but important differences between the two syllabaries.

Do I need to learn katakana to speak Japanese?

You do not need katakana to speak Japanese, since speaking is about sounds, not writing. But for reading anything in real life — menus, signs, manga, product packaging — katakana is essential. Skipping it would leave huge gaps in your ability to navigate written Japanese. It is well worth the week or two it takes to learn.