se / セ
The fourth S-row katakana — “se” in two strokes with a soft bottom hook. Same sound as hiragana せ, opening sweater, set, and sale.
Pronunciation
The character セ represents the syllable 'se', identical in pronunciation to hiragana せ. Common in loanwords (sweater, set, sale, security).
セ carries the same “se” as hiragana せ. It fronts loanwords like セーター (sweater), セット (set), セール (sale), and appears mid-word in メッセージ (message). Its shape is taken straight from the left of its parent kanji 世.
How to write セ
Trace セ on the canvas at the top of the page. Animated arrows show each stroke's direction; trace along them and the stroke fills in. Each numbered step below explains what that stroke does.
A horizontal stroke from the left, rising slightly as it sweeps to the right.
A long vertical crossing it from the top, curving out to the right at the bottom — a soft hook.
Origin
Katakana セ was taken from part of the kanji 世 (se, “world” or “generation”). Its horizontal bar and hooked vertical are lifted directly from 世's left side.
Common words starting with セ
Printable practice sheet
Print this worksheet to practice writing セ by hand — the top row shows the stroke order to trace, then fill the blank squares.
Lock it into memory
Reading is only half of it. Write the katakana you’ve learned from memory in the trainer — the ones you struggle with come back sooner, until they stick.