S t u d y T i m e

Forget how to write a certain hiragana or katakana and just can't seem to find your chart anywhere? It's all happened to us at one point but don't panic just yet. Instead, feel free to save the charts we have available below. Just click the the link and print away!

Hiragana: 1 & 2

Katakana: 1 & 2

Kotowaza (proverbs and idioms):

• kaze no tayori - (message carried on wind) a rumour, story without source
• saru mo ki kara ochiru - (Even a monkey falls from a tree) everyone makes mistakes
• i no naka no kawazu taikai wo shirazu - (a frog in the well does not know the ocean) one who has never seen the world, someone narrow-minded
• ishibashi wo tataite wataru - (tap a stone bridge before crossing) look before you leap
• makeru ga kachi - to lose is to win
• hana yori dango - (sweets over flowers) practical over aesthetics
• ishi no ue ni mo sannen - (sitting on a stone for three years) perseverance wins in the end, patience is a virtue
• nemawashi - (preparing roots for transplanting) covering all the bases
• iwanu ga hana - (not speaking is a flower) silence is golden
• kusai mono ni wa futa wo suru - (cover foul-smelling things) using temporary solutions
• tana kara botamochi - a piece of good luck
• sumeba miyako - (where one lives is the capital city) one learns to love where ever they live
• deru kui wa utareru - (the nail that sticks out will be pounded down) difference is forced into conformity
• isseki ni chou - killing two birds with one stone
• sannin yoreba monju no chie - (three people have the wisdom of Buddha) two heads are better than one
• ne mimi ni mizu - a great surprise, something very unexpected
• toodai moto kurashi - (bottom of lighthouse is dark) can't see what's happening right in front of you, not knowing what's happening in your own backyard
• ashita wa ashita no kaze ga fuku - tomorrow is another day
• nakitsura ni hachi - (bee stings when you're already crying) when it rains, it pours
• sode no shita - (under the sleeve) under the table, a bribe
• kawaiiko ni wa tabi wo saseyo - (if you love your child, make them take the journey themself) spare the rod, spoil the child
• neko ni koban - (coin before cat) pearls before swine
• kooboomo fudeno ayamari - everyone makes mistakes
• au wa wakareno hajimari - we meet only to part
• osuso wake - sharing of a gift
• haragei - (belly performance) going on a gut feeling, using intuition
• goo ni itte wa goo ni shitagae - when in Rome, do as the Romans do
• gojuupo hyappo - very little difference between the two, pot calling the kettle black
• wazawai tenjite fukuto naru - good out of evil, misfortune becomes blessing
• ame futte ji katamaru - (rain firms the ground) adversity builds characters

Kasenekotoba (onomatopoeic expressions, such as "boom"):

• jabu jabu - dabble in water, splash
• tsuru tsuru - smooth, slippery, greasy
• bura bura - dingle-dangling, swinging
• pecha pecha - chatter, babble
• bata bata - flapping in rapid succession, clattering nose
• kan kan - clanging bell sound, red hot fire, mad with anger
• guru guru - round and round, spinning
• gocha gocha - confusion, disorder
• shimi jimi - keenly, deeply, fully, seriously
• doki doki - rapid heart beat, pit-a-pat, thump
• hara hara - flutter down, fall rapidly in drops, feel anxious
• pin pin - lively, full of life
• maa maa - just so-so, calm down
• meso meso - sob, weep, whimper
• moji moji - restless, hesitant
• waza waza - on purpose, specifically, take trouble to do
• sui sui - lightly and quietly
• sumi zumi - corner to corner
• dan dan - gradually, step by step
• choko choko - restlessly, constantly
• doo doo - roaring sounds
• piku piku - twitch
• buyo buyo - spongy, flabby