minimachi

HIRAGANA · CHARACTER GUIDE

ん (n) in hiragana

N in hiragana is ん, the one basic kana without a vowel; it starts with one long diagonal.

Reading
n
Type
n or nn
Katakana
ン
Strokes
1
Audio
see listening section
On this page

How ん is written, and why it is not そ.

The full model: one stroke.

start end

Not to be confused with
そ · soA short line and a sharp zigzag at the top.

Memory hook: Picture a handwritten n with a long first leg: one straight slide down to the left, a small hump, then a rising curve. Make your own · All 46 hiragana mnemonics

More hiragana activities

WRITE IT

How to write ん: stroke order

Shape: A triangle, about as wide as it is tall: one long diagonal, then a small hump and a curve that rises to the right.

In this model, the stroke sweeps. Japanese schools name three kinds of ending: Stop とめ, Hook はね, Sweep はらい. Textbooks and teachers differ on some.

  1. One strokeSweep はらい

    Starts on the vertical center line, near the top. A long straight diagonal down to the left; turn sharply and go back up beside it a short way, over a small hump, straight down on the center line, then round at the bottom and up to the right, ending far right, below the middle.

One mistake to avoid: stroke 1

Watch for
The last part runs off flat to the right, like the bottom of え.
Fix
After coming down the center line, curve round at the bottom and sweep up to the right.
Practice writingMake a writing sheetSee it on the stroke-order chart

Stroke diagrams adapted from KanjiVG, © Ulrich Apel and contributors, CC BY-SA 3.0. License and attribution.

READ IT

Read ん in print and in words.

ん in handwriting and three typefaces

  • Handwriting model
  • Textbook style
  • Print, plain (gothic)
  • Print, serif (mincho)

In every typeface ん starts with one long diagonal. Copy the handwriting model.

Find ん inside a word.

  • senseiteacherBasic kana only
  • mikanmandarin orangeBasic kana only
  • shinkansenbullet trainBasic kana only
  • ringoapple

“Basic kana only” marks a word written only with the 46 basic kana.

みかん and りんご are usually written in kana; in everyday writing せんせい is 先生 and しんかんせん 新幹線. The others are in hiragana here for reading practice.

Read more words with ん

TELL THEM APART

ん or そ?

ん · nOne long diagonal from the top, then a hump and a curve up to the right.
そ · soA short line and a sharp zigzag at the top.

Look at the top: ん starts with one long diagonal; そ always starts with a short line, which turns sharply into a zigzag (in the two-stroke form, a separate mark at the upper left). (The famous look-alike pair is the katakana ン (n) and ソ (so).)

Open the guide for so (そ)

A quick check

Four models, handwritten and printed: is each one ん or そ? Only your first answer to each model counts.

SOUND AND SPELLING

Sound and typing.

Sound: ん is a beat of its own: ほん (hon) is two beats, ho-n, and しんかんせん (shinkansen) is six. Its sound changes with the sound after it, so the romaji n is only a guide.

Typing: Type n before most consonants: せんせい is sensei. Before a vowel or y, use n' to keep ん separate: てんいん (ten’in, a store clerk) is typed ten'in. With one n, n then i gives に. Type nn for a standalone ん. In MiniMachi’s tools, nna gives んな and nnya gives んにゃ; nn is not a universal separator.

YOUR NEXT STEP

Practice ん with そ.

A short round of ん and そ, the shapes this page compares.

Practice ん and そFlip them as flash cards

Practice わ, を and ん: わ を んIt includes わ and を, which this page does not teach.

Learn ん with its group in lesson 10 · 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.

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

ん · n

N in hiragana is ん, the one basic kana without a vowel; it starts with one long diagonal.

Writing model

Write it, stroke by stroke.

  1. Starts on the center line; long diagonal left, back up, a hump, up right. — sweep (はらい)

Watch for: The last part runs off flat to the right, like the bottom of え. Fix: After coming down the center line, curve round at the bottom and sweep up to the right.

せんせい · sensei · teacherみかん · mikan · mandarin orangeしんかんせん · shinkansen · bullet train

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/n/

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

  • ん n

Example words

  • せんせい teacherSound hint (draft): Commonly sounds like せんせー. Keep the kana spelling せんせい; sustain each long vowel for two beats.
  • りんご apple
  • みかん mandarin orange
  • しんかんせん bullet train