Japanese Kana Learning Guide
Tips, techniques, and answers to common questions about learning hiragana, katakana, and Japanese pronunciation.
Japanese Names for Everyday Objects: Turn Daily Life into Learning
Turn the things around you into Japanese flashcards — a room-by-room list of everyday object names (kitchen, living room, bathroom, bag, street) and a routine for making them stick.
How to Count in Japanese: People, Money, and Objects
In Japanese, you add a small word called a counter after the number; this guide explains the key rules for counting and common pitfalls to avoid.
Japanese Long Vowels and the ー Mark: Hiragana & Katakana Rules
A beginner's guide to Japanese long vowels — the five hiragana spelling rules (ああ, いい, うう, えい, おう), the katakana ー (chouonpu) mark, common exceptions, and the pronunciation pitfalls English speakers run into.
Small っ (Sokuon) Explained: The Japanese Double-Consonant Mark
A beginner's guide to the small tsu (っ / ッ), also called sokuon — what it is, how to pronounce it as a held beat, when it appears, and the common words where it changes meaning.
Dakuten and Handakuten Explained: Hiragana Voicing Marks (゛and ゜)
A beginner's guide to dakuten (゛) and handakuten (゜) — the two small marks that turn k/s/t/h kana into g/z/d/b/p — plus the rendaku rule for voicing in compound words.
Tips to Learn Japanese on YouTube for Beginners — Introducing LangClip
A beginner-friendly walkthrough of LangClip — a browser tool that turns YouTube subtitles into translations, grammar notes, and spaced-repetition flashcards.
5 YouTube Channels to Learn Japanese as a Beginner (N5–N4) — Hand-picked by a Native
Five YouTube channels hand-picked by a native Japanese speaker for N5–N4 learners who want slow, everyday Japanese they can turn into a daily listening habit.
Japanese Alphabet Writing Practice Guide for Beginners
A beginner's guide to Japanese alphabet writing practice — learn hiragana, katakana, and kanji step by step with daily practice routines.
Hiragana vs Katakana: Writing Practice Tips & Key Differences
Learn the key differences between hiragana and katakana, and get writing practice tips for both Japanese scripts.
Japanese Vowel Writing Practice: Complete Pronunciation Guide
Practice the five Japanese vowels (a, i, u, e, o) with writing tips, mouth position guides, and common pronunciation mistakes.
Japanese Consonants That Trip Up English Speakers
How to pronounce the Japanese R, tsu (つ), fu (ふ), and other sounds that don't have exact English equivalents.
Long Vowels and Double Consonants in Japanese
Why おばさん and おばあさん mean completely different things, and how to hear and produce the difference.
Hiragana & Katakana Stroke Order: Writing Practice Guide
Learn why correct stroke order matters for hiragana and katakana writing practice — improve readability, speed, and muscle memory.
Common Kana Mistakes Beginners Make
The most frequently confused hiragana and katakana characters — like き vs さ, シ vs ツ — and how to tell them apart.