Tag Archives: Beginning Japanese

Writing Hiragana – え

“E” OR “え” SAYS “short e sound as in egg”
2 STROKES

The First stroke belongs in the upper middle of the character. Starting on the left, make a very small sloped line downwards.

eh-1

Sometimes, you might see this line with a small side-stroke back towards the left. These characters were originally written with a brush, and this was just a small pull sideways that gave it flair. It shouldn’t be too deliberate – more a fast pull than anything.

eh-2

Second, below the first line and without picking up your pen! Start by making a sloping-upwards line. Then pull your pen down quickly in a slight diagonal. Drag it back up again about 1/2 way. Then pull off into a sloping “s” shape.

Kind of like a slanted “h” with a fancy top and a hooked end.

eh-3

Pay attention to proportions – note that Step 2 ends up close to where Step 1 started. Step 3 pulls off at close to where Step 1 started. The hook on Step 4 goes below Step 2.

Eh 7.png

Final Version of This Part:
eh-4

FINAL

EXAMPLES (FROM TOP 1000 JAPANESE WORDS)

かえる (Kaeru) = Frog
いえ (Ie) = House / Home
えんぴつ (Enpitsu) = Pencil

Tags: え, Beginning Japanese, Hiragana, Japanese, Japanese 101, Language, Learning Japanese

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Categories Japanese, Language, Life

Writing Hiragana – い

26 Nov

“I” OR “い” SAYS “EE”
2 STROKES

The first stroke looks a little like a fish hook (but not quite written that way). Make a slightly curved vertical line down, then (without picking up your pen) give it a small up-stroke. These characters were originally written with a brush, and this was just a small pull upwards that gave it flair. It shouldn’t be too deliberate – more a fast pull than anything.