Speaking the Japanese language is rather easy compared to English. Each syllable has only 1 way it can be pronounced. And instead of using a stress accent, Japanese uses what is called a pitch accent. Certain parts of words are pitched higher than other syllables. But if you do not know which part of the word to accent, then sticking with an even pitch is best because you will still be understood.
Pronouncing Japanese Syllables
Vowels
Japanese has 5 vowel sounds that are romanized as a, i, u, e, and o. They are pronounced in a short, clipped manner. Sometimes vowels are put together to create longer vowels sounds.
| Japanese | English equivalent |
|---|---|
| a | "ah" as in "father" |
| i | "ee" as in "bee" |
| u | "oo" as in "boo" |
| e | "eh" as in "hay" |
| o | "oh" as in "coat" |
Consonants
The Japanese consonants are k, s, t, n, h, f, m, y, r, w, g, z, and d. They are pronounced much the same as their English counterparts. A few main differences are:
- The language contains neither an "r" nor an "l" sound. The character romanized as an "r" is a combination of the two made by rolling your tongue.
- Instead of curling the lip over the bottom teeth to pronounce an "f" sound, the "f" in the syllable "fu" is made by lightly blowing.
- The "w" sound is made with slack lips.