Long vowels in hiragana spelling

The idea

A long vowel takes an extra mora. In hiragana, ああ, いい and うう commonly extend a, i and u; えい is often pronounced long e, as in せんせい, and こう normally has long o. Some words instead use ええ or おお, as in おねえさん and とおい; learn the spelling of each word.

Examples

• おばあさんは先生せんせいです。My grandmother is a teacher.
• 駅えきはとおいです。The station is far away.
• れいぞうこを開あけます。I open the refrigerator.
• ろうかを歩あるきます。I walk down the corridor.
• 冷蔵庫れいぞうこにぎゅうにゅうがありません。There is no milk in the refrigerator.
• せんせい、おはようございます。Good morning, teacher.

Watch out

A long sound is not always written with the same vowel twice: せんせい uses い and ろうか uses う. Adjacent vowels can also belong to separate syllables.

Try it yourself

1. Fill the blank with one kana or mark: せんせ＿ (sensei).

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   い

   Compare the written parts and reading: せ + い = せい (sē).

2. Fill the blank with one kana or mark: と＿い (tōi).

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   お

   Compare the written parts and reading: と + お = とお (tō).

3. Fill the blank with one kana or mark: おば＿さん (obāsan).

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   あ

   Compare the written parts and reading: ば + あ = ばあ (bā).

Use it today

Cover the chart, read two examples aloud and write one target word from memory. Compare its spelling and timing with the original.