つ and し: Stop Guessing and Start Seeing the Difference

Yesterday you met し and I told you to watch the stroke direction. Today we finish the job. The t-row is た ち つ て と — five kana, one of which (つ) is the most misread character in the set. By the end of this drill you will type ちかてつ (subway) without hesitating.

The five shapes

Start with the two easy ones. た (ta) is a cross with two small strokes on the right. と (to) is a short diagonal with a hook — like a comma with a hat. Neither looks like anything else you know.

て (te) is a single stroke that goes left to right, then curves down and back. Think of a wave that breaks to the left. In handwriting it often looks like a backwards 'c' with a tail.

ち (chi) is a cross with a loop underneath. The loop is the giveaway. If you see a cross and a curl below it, it is ち, not た.

And then there is つ (tsu).

Why つ is the one that bites

つ is a single curved stroke that opens to the left. It looks like a wide 'c' with a flat top. The problem is that し is also a single curved stroke — but し opens to the right and goes up. Say it out loud: し goes up, つ goes across.

Here is the test I use. Cover the right half of the character. If the stroke is still there on the left, it is つ. If it vanishes, it is し. In つ the curve lives on the left side of the box. In し the curve lives on the right.

Try it on these two: すし (sushi) and ちかてつ (subway). The first has し at the end — curve on the right. The second has つ at the end — curve on the left. You already know すし from yesterday. Today you add ちかてつ, which is the word you will see on a sign in your city or anywhere with a metro.

Katakana: the t-row is boxy

タ チ ツ テ ト. Katakana ツ and シ are the classic trap, and the rule is the same idea but rotated. In ツ the two small strokes on top are vertical — they point down. In シ the two small strokes are horizontal — they point right. Vertical strokes mean ツ. Horizontal strokes mean シ.

A quick way to remember: ツ has a vertical spine, シ has a horizontal spine. The long stroke follows the same direction as the small ones.

Drill: type these

Do not read the romaji. Look at the kana and type.

• ちかてつ (subway)
• たて (vertical)
• つくえ (desk)
• とし (year)
• ちかい (near)
• て (hand)
• そと (outside)
• つき (moon)

Now mix them with yesterday's s-row:

• すし (sushi)
• あさ (morning)
• せかい (world)
• ちかてつ (subway)
• すこし (a little)

If you stumbled on すこし, that is normal. す and こ and し are all small and round. Slow down for one second, check the direction of each curve, then speed back up.

The one-second check

Before you type a kana that looks like a curve, ask: which side is the opening on? Left opening, left curve — つ. Right opening, right curve — し. That is the whole trick. It works in hiragana and, with a rotation, in katakana too.

Tomorrow the curves get worse. The n-row has loops inside loops, and ね and れ are nearly twins. But there is a reason ねこ (cat) is the first word most people learn to read at speed — and tomorrow you will see why.