HIRAGANA · CHARACTER GUIDE
て (te) in hiragana
Te in hiragana is て, one line that folds back into a curve; with two marks it is で (de).
On this page
How て is written, and how to tell it from そ.
The full model: one stroke.
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Memory hook: Picture a tent: the top line runs right, then folds back and curves down one side. Make your own · All 46 hiragana mnemonics
More hiragana activities
WRITE IT
How to write て: stroke order
Shape: Wider at the top, like an upside-down triangle: a line across the top, and a curve that hangs from its right end and turns back out to the right.
In this model, the stroke stops. 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.
One strokeEnding: Stop とめ
Starts far left, well above the horizontal center line. A line rising gently to the right, with its middle on the vertical center line; at the far right, fold sharply back down to the left, going back a little along the line. Curve down to just below the middle, a little left of the vertical center line, then round to the right, stopping well right of the vertical center line, near the bottom.
One mistake to avoid: stroke 1
- Watch for
- Rounding the turn at the upper right, so the top line bends into the curve with no sharp point.
- Fix
- At the far right, fold straight back down to the left, going back a little along the line, as in the model.
Stroke diagrams adapted from KanjiVG, © Ulrich Apel and contributors, CC BY-SA 3.0. License and attribution.
READ IT
Read て in print and in words.
て in handwriting and three typefaces
Handwriting model Textbook style Print, plain (gothic) Print, serif (mincho)
In every typeface て keeps one line across the top, folding back into the curve. Copy the handwriting model.
Find て inside a word.
- てtehand. Up to the T row
- あさってasattethe day after tomorrowThe small っ doubles the t: asatte, with a short pause before it.
- てがみtegamiletter (mail)
- たてものtatemonobuilding
“Up to the T row” marks a word written only with kana from the vowels to the T row of the chart, so you can read it if you learn the chart in order.
あさって is often written in hiragana; in everyday writing て is 手, てがみ 手紙 and たてもの 建物. The others are in hiragana here for reading practice.
The particle で in sentences
- えきで まちます。 eki de machimasu “I’ll wait at the station.”
- じてんしゃで いきます。 jitensha de ikimasu “I go by bicycle.”
- はしで たべます。 hashi de tabemasu “I eat with chopsticks.”
The spaces in this page’s sentences only help you read; ordinary Japanese has none.
TELL THEM APART
て or そ?
Look above the curve: て has one line across the top that folds straight back into it; そ has a short line and a zigzag first. The lower half of そ is shaped like て.
A quick check
Two handwritten models and two printed ones: て or そ? 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.
SOUND AND SPELLING
で, a particle: where you do something, and by or with what.
As a particle: で (て with dakuten) follows a word and marks the place where you do something (wait at the station) or what you use (by bicycle, with chopsticks), as in the sentences above. For where someone or something is, Japanese uses に instead: えきに います (eki ni imasu), I am at the station. It is read de, and typed de.
WITH DAKUTEN
で (de): て with dakuten.
Two short marks, called dakuten, change te to de. They go at the upper right, under the end of the top line and beside the curve; write them last, the left one first. で is also the particle in the sentences above.
Type de.
- でぐち deguchi · exit
- うで ude · arm
YOUR NEXT STEP
Practice て with そ.
A short round of て and そ, the shapes this page compares.
Practice the whole T row: た ち つ て とIt includes た, ち, つ and と, which this page does not teach.
Learn て with its group in lesson 4 · 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): て
- z-shogei calligraphy school: ち, つ and て
- Matsumoto Shoeido calligraphy school: て
- Matsumoto Shoeido calligraphy school: て
- Matsumoto Shoeido calligraphy school: dakuten
- Japanese-Lesson.com: た ち つ て と
- ryohkei.com: て and で
- ToKini Andy, Japanese Kana: て and the lower part of そ
- わくわく教材 (kyozaisupport.com): look-alike hiragana sheets, て and そ
- 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
て · te
Te in hiragana is て, one line that folds back into a curve; with two marks it is で (de).
Write it, stroke by stroke.
- Starts far left, high; rises right, folds back sharply, curves round. — stop (とめ)
Watch for: Rounding the turn at the upper right, so the top line bends into the curve with no sharp point. Fix: At the far right, fold straight back down to the left, going back a little along the line, 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/te/
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
- て te
Example words
- あさって the day after tomorrow
- たてもの building
- てがみ letter (mail)
- て hand