Ruby Character - Examples

Examples

Here is an example of Japanese ruby characters (called furigana) for Tokyo ("東京"):

Most furigana (Japanese ruby characters) are written with the hiragana syllabary, but katakana and romaji are also occasionally used. Alternatively, sometimes foreign words (usually English) are printed with furigana implying the meaning, and vice-versa. Textbooks usually write on-readings with katakana and kun-readings with hiragana.

Here is an example of the Chinese ruby characters for Beijing ("北京"):

In Taiwan, the syllabary used for Chinese ruby characters is Zhuyin fuhao (also known as Bopomofo); in mainland China pinyin is used. Typically, zhuyin is used with a vertical traditional writing and zhuyin is written on the right side of the characters. In mainland China, horizontal script is used and ruby characters (pinyin) are written above the Chinese characters.

Books with phonetic guides are popular with children and foreigners learning Chinese (especially pinyin).