JAJUJO Hiragana Flashcards — Printable, Front and Back

Free Printable Hiragana Flashcards for Beginners

These JAJUJO hiragana flashcards drill the ninth set of yōon combined kana — じ plus a small ゃ, ゅ, or ょ. Like all yōon, these form a single syllable (ja, ju, jo). The J group is the dakuten counterpart of the SH group (SH + ゛ = J) — same shapes, voiced /j/ instead of /sh/ — and shows up in some of the most-used grammatical constructions in modern Japanese.

You get double-sided flashcards printed on letter-size paper (8.5 × 11 inches). The front of each card shows the Japanese word in hiragana; the back shows the English meaning plus the romaji reading. The J combined kana unlock conversational essentials: じゃない (ja nai, the casual negative copula 'isn't / aren't'), じゃあ (jaa, 'well then / so'), 上手 (jouzu, 'skillful'), 授業 (jugyou, 'class / lesson'), 女性 (josei, 'woman'), and the universal じゅうたん (juutan, 'carpet') plus the iconic ジャパン (japan).

What's on each card?

• Front: the Japanese word written in large hiragana, with the romaji pronunciation below.
• Back: the English meaning, mirrored so it lines up with the front when you print double-sided.
• Subtle StudyHiragana.com watermark on each card so the deck stays branded after cutting.

How to print and assemble

• Click the Print button above (or press Ctrl/Cmd + P).
• Choose two-sided printing and flip on the long edge — this keeps front and back aligned.
• Use standard 8.5" × 11" letter paper. Card stock works too if you want sturdier cards.
• Cut along the dashed lines to separate the six cards on each sheet.
• Optional: laminate the cards for longer life.

How to study with hiragana flashcards

The point of beginner hiragana flashcards isn't just memorising characters — it's connecting them to real vocabulary the moment you learn them. Use the deck this way:

• Hold a card so only the front (hiragana) is visible. Read it aloud and try to recall the meaning.
• Flip the card to check. If you got it right, set it in a "knew it" pile; if not, return it to the deck.
• Shuffle and repeat until the "didn't know it" pile is empty.
• Switch directions: look at the English meaning and try to recall the hiragana spelling. This is harder but builds active recall.

Why J combined kana matter

The J yōon group is grammatically loaded and dense in vocabulary. じゃ is one of the most-used kana sequences in spoken Japanese — it forms the casual copula じゃ / じゃない ("is / isn't"), the contracted では → じゃ (used everywhere from greetings to opinions), and the conversation-closer じゃあ ("well then / see you / OK"). It also anchors 邪魔 (jama, "a bother / hindrance") and ジャパン (the country name in loanword form). じゅ shows up in 授業 (jugyou, "class / lesson"), 十 (juu, "ten"), 十分 (juubun, "sufficient"), 寿司 (sushi — but compare 寿 as juumyou, lifespan), 重要 (juuyou, "important"), 自由 (jiyuu, "freedom"). じょ anchors 上手 (jouzu, "skillful"), 女 (jo, "woman" — in 女性 josei, 女子 joshi), 助ける (tasukeru, but compare 助 jo in 助手 joshu, "assistant"), 情報 (jouhou, "information"), 状況 (joukyou, "situation"), and the universal じょうずに ("skillfully").

Keep practising

After you've mastered these JAJUJO flashcards, deepen your hiragana skills with our other free tools:

• Interactive じゃじゅじょ guide — pronunciation, stroke order, and a writing canvas to practice each character.
• Printable hiragana flashcards by character — single-character flashcard sheets for each row of the chart.
• Full hiragana chart — all 46 basic hiragana characters at a glance.
• StudyHiragana.com home — interactive practice with stroke order, recall games, and spaced repetition.