Two Ticks and a Circle
Two marks that unlock twenty five more sounds.
Two Ticks
Two small ticks go in the top right corner of a kana. The consonant sound becomes softer. Nothing else about the character changes.
Tap each pair below to hear the difference.
K → G
S → Z
T → D
H → B
The Same Change in Romaji
Each row swaps its first letter. A few spellings change more than that, like shi to ji.
か → がk → gさ → ざs → zた → だt → dは → ばh → bA Small Circle
A small circle goes in the same corner. It works on the H row only, and it makes a P sound.
Now try , which means a walk. It comes out as sampo, not sanpo. Right before a b or a p, ん turns into an m.
Practice What You Learned
きんTap to check — can you read it?