HIRAGANA · CHARACTER GUIDE
ほ (ho) in hiragana
Ho in hiragana is ほ: two bars on the right and a line on the left, unlike は and ま.
On this page
How ほ is written, and why it is not は or ま.
The full model: 4 strokes, numbered in order.
start end
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Memory hook: Picture a hose that comes down from a flat shelf beside a post, crosses a second bar and loops at the foot. Make your own · All 46 hiragana mnemonics
More hiragana activities
WRITE IT
How to write ほ: stroke order
Shape: About square, in two parts: a tall line on the left, and a wider right part with two bars and a loop at the bottom.
In this model, stroke 1 ends in a hook and strokes 2 and 3 stop. Sources differ on how stroke 4 ends, so no ending is marked: copy the model. Japanese schools name three kinds of ending: Ending: Stop とめ, Ending: Hook はね, Ending: Sweep はらい. Textbooks and teachers differ on some.
Stroke 1Ending: Hook はね
Starts far left of the vertical center line, near the top, about level with the start of stroke 2. Down with a gentle curve to near the bottom, then a flick up toward stroke 2.
Stroke 2Ending: Stop とめ
Starts on the vertical center line, near the top. A short line rising gently to the right.
Stroke 3Ending: Stop とめ
Starts on the vertical center line, above the horizontal one. A second line, parallel to stroke 2.
Stroke 4
Starts just under stroke 2, touching it, right of the center line. Straight down through stroke 3, then curve left into a wide, flat loop, go back up across the long line, and finish toward the lower right.
One mistake to avoid: strokes 2 and 4
- Watch for
- Stroke 4 crosses stroke 2 and sticks out above it, as the long stroke does in ま.
- Fix
- Start stroke 4 just under stroke 2, touching it, as in the model.
Stroke diagrams adapted from KanjiVG, © Ulrich Apel and contributors, CC BY-SA 3.0. License and attribution.
READ IT
Read ほ in print and in words.
ほ in handwriting and three typefaces
Handwriting model Textbook style Print, plain (gothic) Print, serif (mincho)
In every typeface ほ keeps its line on the left and two bars on the right. Copy the handwriting model.
Find ほ inside a word.
- ほしhoshistar. Up to the H row
- ほそいhosoislender; narrow. Up to the H row
- ほんhonbook
- にほんnihonJapanThe kanji 日本 can also be read にっぽん (nippon). The hiragana にほん here is read nihon.
“Up to the H row” marks a word written only with kana from the vowels to the H row of the chart, so you can read it if you learn the chart in order.
In everyday writing these words use kanji (ほし is 星, ほそい 細い, ほん 本, にほん 日本); here they are in hiragana for reading practice.
TELL THEM APART
ほ, は or ま?
Count the bars on the right, then look left: ほ has two bars and a line on the left, は has one bar, and ま has no line on the left; its long stroke sticks out above the bars.
Open the guide for ha (は)Open the guide for ma (ま)
A quick check
Four models, handwritten and printed: ほ, は or ま? Only your first answer to each model counts. The models are pictures; each one is described in words after you answer.
This check changed in another tab. It now shows your latest answers.
Which reading matches this model?
Check finished.
A short practice with pictures of the shapes. It does not test pronunciation, listening or long-term recall.
MARKED FORMS: DAKUTEN AND HANDAKUTEN
ぼ (bo) and ぽ (po): ほ with dakuten, and with a small circle.
ぼ (bo): ほ with dakuten
Two short marks, called dakuten, change ho to bo. They sit just right of the end of the top bar; write them last, the left one first.
Type bo.
- ぼうし boushi · hat; cap The う makes the o long: said bō-shi.
- そぼ sobo · (my) grandmother
ぽ (po): ほ with a small circle
A small circle in the same place, called handakuten, changes ho to po; write it last, in one stroke. Few hiragana words begin with ぽ: it usually follows ん or a small っ (which doubles the next sound), as in these two.
Type po.
- さんぽ sanpo · walk; stroll
- いっぽん ippon · one (long, thin thing) Counting long, thin things such as pens uses all three forms: いっぽん (ippon, one), にほん (nihon, two; written like にほん, Japan), さんぼん (sanbon, three).
YOUR NEXT STEP
Practice ほ with は and ま.
A short round of ほ, は and ま, the shapes this page compares.
Practice the whole H row: は ひ ふ へ ほIt includes ひ, ふ and へ, which this page does not teach.
Learn ほ with its group in lesson 6 · Try it on the hiragana keyboard
Sources, artwork and review status
Teaching content on this page is a draft: a Japanese educator has not reviewed it yet. Generated pronunciation audio is available in the listening section.
Stroke models and drawings: KanjiVG, © Ulrich Apel and contributors, CC BY-SA 3.0. License and attribution.
Two typefaces are served from this site: Klee One and Noto Serif JP (SIL Open Font License). The gothic sample uses this device’s own font.
- Japan Foundation: MARUGOTO-NO-KOTOBA vocabulary (readings and meanings)
- Jisho.org (JMdict): readings and common spellings
- syoka-koyoblog (penmanship): ほ
- z-shogei calligraphy school: へ, ほ and ま
- Matsumoto Shoeido calligraphy school: ほ
- Matsumoto Shoeido calligraphy school: ほ
- Matsumoto Shoeido calligraphy school: dakuten
- Matsumoto Shoeido calligraphy school: handakuten
- Japanese-Lesson.com: は ひ ふ へ ほ
- ryohkei.com: ほ, ぼ and ぽ
- Japan Foundation’s Irodori kana materials (spelling reference)
Draft teaching content · Japanese educator review pending · Approved generated audio is available in the listening section; romaji is a reading aid, not a pronunciation guide.
minimachi · HIRAGANA CHARACTER CARD
ほ · ho
Ho in hiragana is ほ: two bars on the right and a line on the left, unlike は and ま.
Write it, stroke by stroke.
- Starts far left, near the top; long, gently curved, then flicks up. — hook (はね)
- Starts on the center line, near the top; a short line rising gently. — stop (とめ)
- Starts on the center line, above the middle; a second line, parallel. — stop (とめ)
- Starts just under stroke 2; down through stroke 3, a flat loop, then right.
Sources differ on how stroke 4 ends, so no ending is marked: copy the model.
Watch for: Stroke 4 crosses stroke 2 and sticks out above it, as the long stroke does in ま. Fix: Start stroke 4 just under stroke 2, touching it, as in the model.
Trace, copy, then cover the model and write from memory.
Stroke model: KanjiVG, © Ulrich Apel and contributors · CC BY-SA 3.0 · kanjivg.tagaini.net · license: creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
Draft teaching content; Japanese educator review pending. Generated audio: see full guide.
Full guide and sources: minimachi.com/hiragana/ho/
Listen to the sounds and examples on this page
Generated speech: Google Cloud Text-to-Speech. Checked by a native Japanese speaker. Audio is available only for items with a Listen button. Listen plays at normal speed; Slow gives more listening time at the original pitch. Sound hints are drafts pending educator review.
Kana sounds
- ほ ho
Example words
- ほん book
- さんぽ walk; stroll
- にほん Japan
- ほし star
- ほそい slender; narrow