What Are the Two Dots on Japanese Hiragana? Dakuten Explained

You already know か (ka), き (ki), く (ku), け (ke), and こ (ko). Then a familiar word appears with a small mark: がくせい. Is that still ka, or has the sound changed?

The short answer

Those two short strokes are called dakuten: ゛. When dakuten is added to a kana in the か row, its consonant changes from k to g. The shape underneath stays familiar, so read the base kana and then notice the mark.

The same pattern applies across the row. The Japan Ministry of Education’s kana chart lists the base か row and the voiced が row side by side, with their readings.

See the whole か and が row

Here are the two rows side by side. Read across the first line, then the second, and listen for the k turning into g:

Pair each character with its base. You do not need to memorise five unrelated shapes:

Every pair follows the same rule, so learning one change gives you all five voiced kana.

Read the base before the mark

When you meet one of these kana, first recognise the base shape. If you temporarily ignore the dakuten in げ, the remaining kana is け (ke). Put the mark back and read ge.

The same check works for ご: its base is こ (ko), and the dakuten changes the consonant to g.

Meet the sounds inside real words

Kana are often part of longer words, so try the new sounds in context. The hiragana below makes the spelling pattern easy to see; these words are also commonly written with kanji. In かぎ (kagi, key), only the second kana has dakuten.

Now compare かぐ (kagu, furniture). It begins with unmarked か; the second character is ぐ (gu), not く (ku).

In げんき (genki, well or energetic), the first kana is げ (ge).

In ごご (gogo, p.m. or afternoon), both kana carry dakuten.

Finally, がくせい (gakusei, student) starts with が (ga), followed by unmarked く (ku). Read the beginning as gaku, not gagu.

Dakuten appears on other rows too

The か row is one example of a broader pattern. You will also see dakuten on the さ, た, and は rows. Learn the か row first; you can add the others as you meet them.

In each row the base shape stays recognisable, and the two strokes signal the sound change, just as they do with か and が.

Keep the marks with their own kana

The difference matters: か (ka) and が (ga) are different kana, just as く (ku) and ぐ (gu) are different. If you miss the mark in a word, you may read a different sound.

The two strokes belong to the kana directly beneath them. In かぎ, the word is か + ぎ: the marks change き to ぎ. They do not change the か before it into が.

Write a clear pair

When writing, form the base kana first, then add two small strokes at its upper right. Keep them visible so a reader can tell which version you mean.

Practise dakuten

Spot the mark

Read each character aloud before checking the answer. Ask yourself two questions: which base kana do I recognise, and does it have dakuten?

1. が
2. き
3. ぎ
4. こ
5. ご
6. ぐ

Answers

が (ga), き (ki), ぎ (gi), こ (ko), ご (go), ぐ (gu).

Now check the mark itself:

1. Does け have dakuten?
2. Does げ?
3. Does か?
4. Does が?

Answers

No, yes, no, yes.

Make the voiced row from memory

Say each pair aloud, then reverse it. Reversing helps you recover the base kana when a dakuten character feels unfamiliar.

Write what you hear

Start with the unmarked kana, then add dakuten:

• ga: start with か (ka) → が
• gi: start with き (ki) → ぎ
• gu: start with く (ku) → ぐ
• ge: start with け (ke) → げ
• go: start with こ (ko) → ご

Now write が　ぎ　ぐ　げ　ご from memory. Put か　き　く　け　こ underneath and check that each pair has the same base shape.

Read the words again

Cover the romaji and meaning. Try reading each word directly, paying attention to every dakuten mark.

かぎ, かぐ, げんき, ごご, がくせい

Answers

kagi (key), kagu (furniture), genki (well / energetic), gogo (p.m. / afternoon), gakusei (student).

Keep this in mind

Dakuten is a sound-changing mark attached to a kana, not a separate kana. Once you recognise the か and が rows, the same idea helps you read the voiced さ, た, and は rows.

For a broader overview of the writing systems, continue with Japanese hiragana, katakana, and kanji.

To practise kana recognition, use the kana chart. For another sound-and-spelling pattern, see Japanese long vowels.

Find more beginner lessons in the YapaneseAI learning hub.