め (me)
Pronunciation
The character め represents the syllable 'me', a soft 'm' followed by 'e' as in 'pet'. Part of the ま-row. Take care: め looks similar to ぬ (nu) — but め is more open, while ぬ has an extra closed loop at the lower right.
Stroke-by-Stroke Guide
め is written in two strokes. Stroke 1: a short diagonal stroke on the upper left. Stroke 2: a long flowing curving stroke that begins at the top, sweeps down and to the right, loops around to form an open shape in the lower middle, and ends with a small inward hook. Unlike ぬ, め has only one loop, leaving more open space on the right side.
Common Words with め
- はじめて (hajimete) — for the first time
- はじめに (hajimeni) — first / firstly / first of all
- いためる (itameru) — to hurt / to injure / to cause pain
- あめ (ame) — rain
- うめ (ume) — Japanese apricot / Japanese plum / ume
- かめ (kame) — tortoise / turtle
- つめ (tsume) — nail / claw / talon
- むすめ (musume) — daughter
- め (me) — eye / eyeball
- めし (meshi) — cooked rice
- めす (mesu) — female
- ゆめ (yume) — dream
- よめ (yome) — bride
- ぬいめ (nuime) — seam / stitch / suture
- しずめる (shizumeru) — to quiet / to quieten / to make quiet
- こめ (kome) — rice
- めん (men) — face
- かくめい (kakumei) — revolution
- こくめい (kokumei) — detailed / scrupulous / careful
- しめい (shimei) — name / identity
How to Write め (me) in Hiragana
The hiragana character め is romanized as "me" and is written with 2 strokes. Like "me" in "met". Example word: め (me) — eye.
Stroke Order for め
When writing め, follow the numbered stroke order shown in the reference character above. Japanese characters are generally written from left to right and top to bottom. Correct stroke order improves readability and writing speed.
Practice Tips
- Print this sheet on standard 8.5" × 11" letter paper
- Start by tracing the light grey guide characters in the first column
- Then practice writing め freehand in the empty squares
- Pay attention to stroke direction and order — follow the numbered guide
- For interactive practice with animations, visit the main study page
About Hiragana
Hiragana is one of the three Japanese writing systems. It consists of 46 basic characters, each representing a syllable. Hiragana is used for native Japanese words, grammar particles, and verb endings. Learning correct stroke order is essential for proper Japanese handwriting.