Nu vs me: ぬ and め hiragana stroke order
The shapes share much of their movement. Slow down at the end of the second stroke: ぬ (nu) finishes with a loop that め (me) does not have.
The quick difference: ぬ has a finishing loop; め does not
- ぬ (nu): two strokes. The second stroke continues into the small loop at the lower right.
- め (me): two strokes. It has the crossing body, but no small finishing loop.
The stroke count is the same, so counting to two will not tell them apart. Watch where the second stroke ends in the two models below. Keep the loop as part of that movement, rather than adding a third stroke.
Stay with one continuous stroke
Both models here use two strokes. In ぬ, the small finishing loop belongs to the second stroke. Do not lift the pen to attach a separate circle afterward. Follow the marker all the way through, including the crossing and the finish.
Loops can be hard to understand from a still picture because the line passes through an area you have already seen. Watch the direction marker, not just the dark outline, to keep track of which part of the path is currently being drawn.
Give the loop room
Start with a larger character. If the loop collapses into a dark spot, the solution may be to slow down and leave more room, not to add another stroke. Keep your grip relaxed and compare the overall balance with the model.
The aim is a recognizable handwritten character. You do not need to match the exact curvature of a computer path.
Two tiny practice words
Practice the second character in each word, then write the full words next to each other. For あめ, hiragana alone does not distinguish 雨 (rain) from 飴 (candy); spelling, context, and pronunciation work together.
Can you choose nu or me inside a word?
Cover the examples above. Write each word on paper before opening the answers. The blank is one hiragana: choose ぬ or め.
- い＿ — inu, dog
- ま＿ — mame, beans
- ＿の — nuno, cloth
- ＿ — me, eye
Show the four answers
- いぬ: the final character needs the finishing loop.
- まめ: the final character has no finishing loop.
- ぬの: the first character needs the finishing loop.
- め: no finishing loop.
Open these four answers in the free practice desk to check the movement, or use a printable handwriting worksheet for another attempt.
If both endings are clear in isolation but blur together in a word, repeat only the missed word and name the correction. For the rest of the sound set, return to the 46-character hiragana stroke order chart.
Now take away the model
- Watch ぬ and め once each.
- Hide the character in the practice desk.
- Write “inu” and “ame” in hiragana on paper.
- Reveal the models. Check which word needs the finishing loop.
If you missed it, circle the difference on your paper and try again later. A useful correction names one specific thing to change, such as “keep the pen moving into the final loop.”