Ke Ko

Katakana 1

Chapter 4 · Ke Ko

🌿 Finishing the K Row — ケ コ

Two characters complete the K row today: ケ (ke) and コ (ko). Together with カ キ ク you can now read the whole row, and your word list jumps to five real words, including cake and cocoa. Romaji is shown for everything.

✨ Your Two New Characters — ケ コ

ケ
ke
like "ke" in kettle ("keh")
3 strokes · stroke order ▸
Memory hook: a kettle: a pointed lid, a spout swinging out to the left and a long body. Hiragana twin: け.
コ
ko
like "co" in cocoa, but short ("koh")
2 strokes · stroke order ▸
Memory hook: a corner: two lines meeting at a right angle, like a corner of a room. Hiragana twin: こ.
KatakanaHiragana twinRomaji
ke
ko

🔤 The Complete K Row

kakikukeko

Top row katakana, bottom row hiragana: say each pair aloud.

Look-Alikes: コ vs ユ, and ケ vs ク コ (ko) is two lines and an open side, like a corner. Later in the course you'll meet ユ (yu), which looks like コ with an extra line sticking out at the bottom. Also compare ケ with ク (ku): ケ has a third stroke, a long diagonal that crosses the short bar, and ク has only two.

📖 Read It — Five Real Words

#WordRomajiEnglishNote
1kēkicakeke + ー + ki: three beats
2kokoacocoako-ko-a: three beats
3ōkēOKo-o-ke-e: four beats; very common
4ekoeco; eco-friendlyshort for ecology
5keacareas in skin care or hair care
6koke(drill)a sound drill: ko-ke
7kēku(drill)a drill: ke-e-ku
Bent English オーケー is the English "OK" written as the two letter names "oh-kay", each stretched with ー. And ココア shows the Japanese rule at work: no stressed syllables, just even beats, ko-ko-a, where English says "COH-koh". Say katakana words flat and even, and they'll sound much more natural.

✍️ Try It Yourself — れんしゅう

Say each answer out loud first, then click to check.

1. Read aloud: · · · ·

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ke · ko · ki · ku · ka

2. Read aloud and translate: ·

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kēki (cake) · kokoa (cocoa)

3. Read aloud and translate: ·

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ōkē (OK) · eko (eco)

4. How many beats are in オーケー?

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Four: オ · ー · ケ · ー (o-o-ke-e).

5. What is the difference between and in shape and sound?

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コ is two lines at a corner and sounds like ko; ク is a hook with a swoop and sounds like ku.

6. Write in katakana: kēki · kokoa · kea (check the stroke order).

Show answer

· ·

Coming Up in Chapter 5 The S row begins: サ シ ス (sa, shi, su). You'll be able to read アイス (ice), スキー (ski), スイス (Switzerland) and more. Watch out for the look-alike pair シ and ツ, which we'll deal with when we reach ツ in Chapter 7.