MARU: Learn Japanese Hiragana 4+

Easy Beginner Kana Practices

Overdreamer, LLC

Designed for iPad

    • 4.9 • 11.5K Ratings
    • Free
    • Offers In-App Purchases

Screenshots

Description

Start learning Japanese from zero, for free, now!
Free version: All alphabets, 5 Mistakes = 1 Short Ad
Pro Version (OPTIONAL!!): Remove Ads and unlock even more practices

Hey there! Want to learn Japanese? MARU Japanese Kana, used by over 1 million learners around the world, is just the right tool for you. It's a small but mighty app I created to make Japanese alphabets less scary and more fun! I did such an awesome job that I wish MARU was around when I started learning Japanese. Seems like I'm not the only one, looking at all the fantastic reviews!

Jump right in and get the real Japanese vibe from a professional voice actress in a ton of exercises. There are 14 different fun practices that make learning Hiragana and Katakana as easy as pie. Reading, writing, listening, typing, and even boosting your vocab - it's all here. A perfect start to your Japanese adventure!
About those ads: only a teeny-tiny bit. You'll see an ad only after five mistakes. Since MARU was born in 2017, it's been downloaded over a million times, but I've hardly made any money with ads. No sweat, though! This is all about spreading the joy of learning Japanese!

What's inside:
• 105 Hiragana and Katakana characters, even the fancy sounds and combos.
• Over 300 everyday words (like ""hello"" and ""thank you"") for practice.
• Super clear voice recordings for all words and characters.
• MARU-kun, our adorable mascot, welcomes you every time you practice.
• A clever feature that spots your struggles and helps manage your progress.
• A fun way to practice Katakana with Hiragana words you already know.

It's totally free, but if you want to upgrade, here's what you get:
• A peaceful, ad-free experience.
• Practice offline, anytime, anywhere.
• Try your hand at writing and typing.
• Test yourself with timed exercises.
• Unlock even more words for time, date, and Katakana.

Here's one of my favorite reviews:
"This is MY #1 app for learning Japanese. I downloaded EVERY Japanese app I could find without paying a single dime. The app does exactly what it promises - nice graphics, great voice acting, and awesome practice methods. I'm in love with this awesome app!" - someone who's also very awesome

Wow! I can't believe you finished reading all this. You must be very interested by now. Just download and start learning already!

What’s New

Version 2.12

やっほー!May 2024 be the year to become so so good at Japanese! Your favorite Hiragana learning app just got even better (•u•):
• iPad Optimization: Hi my 12% iPad users, I finally spent some time to enlarge the font sizes for some areas in iPad. I also adjusted MARU's face a bit. Bye bye Fat MARU, hello Big MARU!
• Sound Optimization: Based on your feedback, I increased the volume of all the pronunciation files. Hopefully that makes them clearer!
• Detail View Optimization: I enlarged the Kana in the detail screen and added a cool scroll effect to make it prettier.
• Hide Romaji: Tap top right toggle again to hide romaji to review Kanas
• Dark Mode Fix: Fixed bug where sometimes borders disappear in practices when you first purchase Pro and switch to Dark Mode.

Ratings and Reviews

4.9 out of 5
11.5K Ratings

11.5K Ratings

Hdbdhehheheh ,

This app is just what I need (one recommendation)

I don’t write app reviews. Over the years I’ve maybe written 5 at most. This one deserves a review. It simple, it’s perfect for what it is. You aren’t bogged down with ads because the developer is an amazing and generous person. Seriously, I appreciate you and your way of developing this app. You only get “punishment ads” if you get five questions wrong you get an ad. There are no time limits which the other similar apps tend to have. That is a huge turn off for me. I have dyslexia, it takes me a second to take everything in. Not having a time limit helps a lot.

I also enjoy the use of basic words. It would be nice for beginners if their translation was on there maybe even just in small font. Most of the words I already know but occasionally I forget and it would be nice to have a simple reminder. That honestly isn’t a big deal my one and only suggestion really is that it would be amazing if when given a word if in the answer section you had to pick each hiragana/katakan. Some what like a fill in the blank of that makes sense. Instead of just selecting the completed translation already spelled out in the answer box. Seriously though, this app is amazing and I really appreciate you for making it as clean and simple as possible.

Christopher8541 ,

FANTASTIC

I have been intimidated by the Japanese written language for many years. I have learned the spoken language on and off several times in my life and always lost steam because I figured, well, I will never learn to read or write Japanese anyway so what is the point. At age 43, and with a renewed interest in Karate, I am tackling the language once again. This time I intend to become fluent in the spoken language, and master both Hiragana and Katakana. I will worry about Kanji later, but am positive I can learn a few hundred...I mean, Japanese elementary school kids do right? So why not me? Anyway, this app is FANTASTIC for drilling the kana. I was AMAZED at how quickly I learned them all. I started this app yesterday and have already unlocked every row (you will see what I mean when you start using this app). And YES, it is true that this app is free and you only see ads if you make 5 mistakes. Then the mistake count is reset to zero. I have only seen like 3 ads so far, but now I know all of the Hiragana so probably will not see anymore ads while doing those drills. FINALLY AND PLEASE READ THIS: The drills build in complexity and soon you are recognizing words like Yakitori...I LOVE THIS APP!!!

AdicCioN MusikaL ,

Highly Recommend 🔥

I’m a total beginner learning the language on my own and trying to memorize both the Hiragana and Katakana charts. This app helped me memorize both. I like that it has a mini dictionary to let you know what words mean (I’m not too concern about definitions at the moment, I’m strictly focusing on learning each character). The helpful part about this app testing you with words is that it allows the app to throw multiple characters at the same time so that you can memorize multiple ones easier. Lastly, what I also love is that it won’t let you pass to other row of characters until you know the current row well enough. DOWNLOAD IT!

SUGGESTION TO DEVELOPER:

I like that you have the Hiragana and Katakana drills separate, BUUUTTT it would also be nice to have a third drill with a combination of both even if you don’t drill us including actual words. It can just be random characters thrown at us using combination of both Hiragana and Katakana. OR ... if you want, just use the same words but mix the spelling of the words using a combination of both Hiragana and Katakana. Thank you!

App Privacy

The developer, Overdreamer, LLC, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy.

Data Used to Track You

The following data may be used to track you across apps and websites owned by other companies:

  • Location
  • Identifiers
  • Usage Data
  • Diagnostics

Data Linked to You

The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:

  • Location
  • Identifiers
  • Usage Data
  • Diagnostics

Data Not Linked to You

The following data may be collected but it is not linked to your identity:

  • Diagnostics

Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More

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