gi / ギ
The second G-row katakana — キ with a dakuten becomes “gi.” Opens guitar, gift, and Greece.
Pronunciation
The character ギ represents the syllable 'gi'. It is キ with the dakuten that voices 'k' to 'g'. Common in music-related loanwords (guitar) and others.
ギ is キ (ki) plus the dakuten ゛. It opens loanwords like ギター (guitar), ギフト (gift), ギリシャ (Greece), and ends words like エネルギー (energy). Same crossbars-and-vertical shape as キ, just voiced.
How to write ギ
Trace ギ on the canvas at the top of the page. Animated arrows show each stroke's direction; trace along them and the stroke fills in. Each numbered step below explains what that stroke does.
Write キ exactly: two short crossbars angling up to the right, then a long vertical descending through both.
Add the dakuten (゛): two small ticks at the upper right — strokes 4 and 5 — sitting above the body as a separate mark.
Origin
Katakana ギ shares its shape with キ, a simplified piece of the kanji 幾 (ki, “how many”). The dakuten ゛ is a later addition that voices “ki” into “gi.”
Common words starting with ギ
Printable practice sheet
Print this worksheet to practice writing ギ by hand — the top row shows the stroke order to trace, then fill the blank squares.
Lock it into memory
Reading is only half of it. Drill the katakana you’ve learned with spaced-repetition flashcards — the fastest way to make them stick.