Free Katakana Worksheets with Stroke Order
Make printable katakana practice sheets for any of the 46 characters, or the voiced forms like ガ and パ. Click characters on the chart, or add a whole row at once, then print. Each character gets numbered stroke steps, its romaji, gray characters to trace and blank squares to write from memory. A4 or US Letter, save as PDF, free and with no signup.
Katakana chart with stroke counts
The 46 basic katakana in gojūon order, with romaji and the number of strokes in each. The sounds and the order are exactly those of the hiragana chart; only the shapes differ. Katakana are straighter and more angular, and most have only two or three strokes.
| a | i | u | e | o |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| アa2 strokes | イi2 strokes | ウu3 strokes | エe3 strokes | オo3 strokes |
| カka2 strokes | キki3 strokes | クku2 strokes | ケke3 strokes | コko2 strokes |
| サsa3 strokes | シshi3 strokes | スsu2 strokes | セse2 strokes | ソso2 strokes |
| タta3 strokes | チchi3 strokes | ツtsu3 strokes | テte3 strokes | トto2 strokes |
| ナna2 strokes | ニni2 strokes | ヌnu2 strokes | ネne4 strokes | ノno1 stroke |
| ハha2 strokes | ヒhi2 strokes | フfu1 stroke | ヘhe1 stroke | ホho4 strokes |
| マma2 strokes | ミmi3 strokes | ムmu2 strokes | メme2 strokes | モmo3 strokes |
| ヤya2 strokes | ユyu2 strokes | ヨyo3 strokes | ||
| ラra2 strokes | リri2 strokes | ルru2 strokes | レre1 stroke | ロro3 strokes |
| ワwa2 strokes | ヲwo3 strokes | |||
| ンn2 strokes |
ヲ (wo, pronounced o) is almost never used in modern writing; you can learn it last.
Voiced katakana: ガ, ザ, ダ, バ, パ and ヴ
As in hiragana, the dakuten (゛) voices a consonant, so カ ka becomes ガ ga, and the handakuten (゜) turns the ハ row into pa. Katakana adds one more: ヴ, ウ with a dakuten, for the v sound in foreign words, as in ヴァイオリン (violin).
| a | i | u | e | o |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ガga4 strokes | ギgi5 strokes | グgu4 strokes | ゲge5 strokes | ゴgo4 strokes |
| ザza5 strokes | ジji5 strokes | ズzu4 strokes | ゼze4 strokes | ゾzo4 strokes |
| ダda5 strokes | ヂji5 strokes | ヅzu5 strokes | デde5 strokes | ドdo4 strokes |
| バba4 strokes | ビbi4 strokes | ブbu3 strokes | ベbe3 strokes | ボbo6 strokes |
| パpa3 strokes | ピpi3 strokes | プpu2 strokes | ペpe2 strokes | ポpo5 strokes |
| ヴvu5 strokes |
What katakana is used for
Katakana writes words borrowed from other languages, such as コーヒー (coffee), テレビ (television) and パン (bread), and foreign names and places, such as アメリカ (America). It also writes many sound effects, the names of plants and animals in scientific writing, and words a writer wants to stand out, the way English uses italics. On a menu, a shop sign or a phone screen in Japan, much of what you read will be katakana.
The long vowel mark ー and small ッ
Two marks matter far more in katakana than in hiragana. The long vowel mark ー (a single stroke) stretches the vowel before it: コ ko becomes コー kō, as in コーヒー. A small ッ before a consonant doubles it, as in ベッド beddo (bed). Small ャ, ュ and ョ combine with the character before them, as in キャ kya, and katakana also uses small ァ, ィ, ゥ, ェ and ォ for sounds Japanese did not have, as in ティ ti and ファ fa. To practice these, choose “Paste your own text” in the generator and paste the words you are learning.
Katakana that look alike
Katakana's simple shapes make a few pairs easy to confuse. Practice them on one sheet:
- シ shi and ツ tsu: the long stroke of シ sweeps up from the bottom left; the long stroke of ツ falls from the top right. シ's dots are stacked on the left, ツ's sit along the top.
- ソ so and ン n: the same rule. ン's long stroke rises from the bottom; ソ's falls from the top.
- ク ku, ケ ke and タ ta: ケ's second stroke is a straight horizontal line; タ has an extra short stroke inside ク.
- ワ wa, ウ u and フ fu: ウ has a short stroke on top; ワ has a vertical stroke on the left; フ has neither.
- ス su and ヌ nu: ヌ has an extra stroke crossing the diagonal.
- チ chi and テ te: チ starts with a short slanted stroke above its horizontal line; テ starts with two straight horizontal lines.
Katakana and kanji
Katakana were made from parts of kanji over a thousand years ago, and some still look like the kanji they resemble: カ and 力 (power), エ and 工 (craft), ニ and 二 (two), ハ and 八 (eight), ロ and 口 (mouth), タ and 夕 (evening). Context tells you which one you are reading, and the katakana versions are usually written slightly smaller and lighter. Once katakana is comfortable, start kanji with the kanji worksheet generator, which begins with the 79 kanji of JLPT N5.
How to practice with these katakana worksheets
Put one row on a sheet with the “+ row” button, trace the three gray characters, use the two faint guides, then fill the blank squares from memory while saying each sound. If you already know hiragana, try a sheet that mixes a hiragana row with the matching katakana row, such as さ し す せ そ with サ シ ス セ ソ: the generator lets you switch between the charts without losing your selection. Not started on hiragana yet? Begin with the free hiragana worksheets. For blank practice squares, use the Japanese writing paper.
Frequently asked questions
Are these katakana worksheets free?
Yes. Make and print as many katakana practice sheets as you like, with no account and no signup. They are free for self-study and for classroom use, and you may photocopy them for your students.
How many katakana are there?
There are 46 basic katakana, the same 46 sounds as hiragana. With the voicing marks there are 25 more (ガ, ザ, ダ, バ and パ rows), plus ヴ for the v sound in foreign words. Small ャ, ュ, ョ and ッ and the long vowel mark ー complete what you need to read.
Should I learn hiragana or katakana first?
Hiragana first is the usual advice, because grammar endings and particles are written in it and you meet it in every sentence. Katakana comes straight after; the sounds are identical, so it is new shapes for sounds you already know.
How do I tell シ and ツ, or ソ and ン, apart?
Look at the direction of the last, long stroke. In シ and ン it starts at the bottom left and sweeps up to the right; in ツ and ソ it starts at the top and falls down to the left. The dots of シ sit on the left, stacked; the dots of ツ sit across the top. The numbered stroke diagrams on the worksheets show the direction of every stroke.
Can I print the whole katakana chart on one worksheet?
A worksheet holds up to 30 characters, so the 46 basic katakana take two: the a-row to the ha-row (30 characters) on the first, and the ma, ya, ra and wa rows with ン (16) on the second. The voiced forms fit on a third.
How do I save a katakana worksheet as a PDF?
Click "Create worksheet", then Print on the preview page, and choose "Save as PDF" as the destination in your browser's print dialog. Choose A4 or US Letter on the preview first.
Licenses and credits
The stroke order diagrams are drawn from KanjiVG, copyright Ulrich Apel, released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 license. Everything else on the worksheet, including the layout and the NexaProva branding, is our own.