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What is Handakuon?

• Handakuon (半濁音) means ‘half-voiced sound’ in Japanese • It is marked by a small circle (゜) at the top right of hiragana characters • Changes the pronunciation to create a ‘p’ sound • Only applies to は (ha) column characters in hiragana

Basic Handakuon Characters

Original Sounds: • は (ha) • ひ (hi) • ふ (fu) • へ (he) • ほ (ho)

With Handakuon: • ぱ (pa) • ぴ (pi) • ぷ (pu) • ぺ (pe) • ぽ (po)

Practice Set 1: Multiple Choice

Choose the correct reading:

1. ぱん is read as:
   
   a) han b) pan c) ban
   
2. ぴザ is read as:
   
   a) hiza b) biza c) piza
   
3. ぺン is read as:
   
   a) hen b) ben c) pen

Practice Set 2: True or False

Mark these statements as True or False:

1. Handakuon can be used with any hiragana character
2. The small circle (゜) creates a ‘p’ sound
3. ぷ is pronounced as ‘bu’
4. ぽ is pronounced as ‘po’

Practice Set 3: Fill in the Blanks

Complete these words using handakuon:

1. コン_ュータ (computer)
2. _ン (bread)
3. スー_ー (super)
4. _イ_ン (pineapple)

Common Words with Handakuon

• パン (pan) – bread
• ピザ (piza) – pizza
• ペン (pen) – pen
• プール (pūru) – pool
• ポケット (poketto) – pocket
• パスポート (pasupōto) – passport

Let’s Review!

• Handakuon is marked with a small circle (゜) • Only applies to は column characters • Creates a ‘p’ sound • Commonly used in loan words from English

Reflection Questions:

• Can you think of more English words that use handakuon in Japanese?
• Why do you think these sounds are called ‘half-voiced’?