Matras are just the vowel's shadow

Every vowel has a full form and a small sign — learn them as pairs.

The question

What is the difference between and ?

The trick

Each vowel has two forms: the full letter used at the start of a word, and the matra — its shadow — used everywhere else. Learn them as pairs, never as two separate lists.

Worked example

1— no sign at all (it is already inside every consonant)
2· · · ·
3· · · ·
4+ = , + = , + =

So: Same sound. stands alone; attaches to a consonant.

Remember it like this

's matra is written *before* the consonant but *said* after it. It is the one impatient vowel that jumps the queue — remember that one exception and the rest behave.

In the exam

Dictation questions are almost entirely matra accuracy. The two that cost the most marks are versus , and う-sounds versus . Practise those four in pairs until you never hesitate.

Why it works

Devanagari consonants come with a built-in 'a' sound. A matra replaces that built-in vowel with a different one. Once you see it as replacing rather than adding, the whole system becomes one rule instead of twelve.

Explain this to my childGet the words to teach it, in your language

Try it yourself

0/3 correct

1
क + ी makes which word-part?
क + ी makes which word-part?
2
Which matra is written before the consonant?
3
What vowel sound is already inside क?
What vowel sound is already inside क?