Japanese alphabet
| Letter | English sound | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| あ | a | as in acute |
| い | i | as in ink |
| う | oo | as in tool |
| え | e | as in elephant |
| お | o | as in Omega |
| は | ha | as in Hanukkah |
| ひ | hi | as in history |
| ふ | fu | as in Fuji |
| へ | he | as in help |
| ほ | ho | as in home |
| か | kka | as in Hanukkah |
| き | ki | as in kiss |
| く | ko | as in cook |
| け | ke | as in kept |
| こ | ko | as in Korea |
| ま | ma | as in machine |
| み | mi | as in ministry |
| む | mu | as in moon |
| め | me | as in melody |
| も | mo | as in Monaco |
| さ | sa | as in sauna |
| し | shi | as in ship |
| す | su | as in Sumatra |
| せ | se | as in Senegal |
| そ | so | as in Somalia |
| や | ya | as in yard |
| ゆ | yu | as in you |
| よ | yo | as in yoga |
| た | ta | as in taught |
| ち | chi | as in chin |
| つ | tsu | as in tsunami |
| て | te | as in telephone |
| と | to | as in Toshiba |
| ら | ra | as in Sahara |
| り | ri | as in ring |
| る | ru | as in ruby |
| れ | re | as in rest |
| ろ | ro | as in Romania |
| な | na | as in knot |
| に | ni | as in knit |
| ぬ | nu | as in nuke |
| ね | ne | as in nest |
| の | no | as in Norway |
| わ | wa | as in Washington |
| ゐ | wi | as in Wii (no longer used) |
| ん | n | as in ton |
| ゑ | we | as in west (no longer used) |
| を | wo | as in wolf |