A Game Changer for Furigana! This Amazing Word Feature Automatically Adds Readings
I’m Ken Kuwako, a science trainer, and for me, every day is an experiment.
“Will all my students be able to read this kanji?”
Have you ever worried about that? When you start a new unit and hand out a worksheet or a test with difficult kanji and technical terms, it’s easy to wonder if students who struggle with reading will be able to follow along. It’s such a waste when you’ve put so much effort into creating a great resource, only for students to get stuck on a few characters. When that happens, they can’t understand the content, or they can’t even start on the test questions.
“I know I should add furigana to every kanji… but doing it by hand takes way too long!”
If you’ve ever felt this way, I’ve got a fantastic solution for you. There’s a magic time-saving trick using a simple Word feature that will solve this problem instantly. For a while, there have been macros that automatically add furigana to Word documents. I even used one myself, following the instructions on this page. However, due to OS updates and other issues, these macros have become less reliable, and many teachers can no longer use this helpful feature. I was one of them.
So, I decided to improve the macro myself, adjusting it to automatically add furigana to almost all kanji. This is a simple but powerful tool that will make creating your daily teaching materials much easier. Please note: This macro only works in a Windows environment. With this macro, you can create easy-to-read worksheets for your students in a fraction of the time.
Watch this video to see how the furigana is added automatically.
How to Set Up the Auto-Furigana Macro
Setup (Do this once)
Open this Word file, then copy all the code inside. Select all and copy.
Word file with the Furigana Macro
2. With Word still open, click the “View” tab.
3. In the “Macros” group, click “Macros” and then select “View Macros.”
4. The “Macros” dialog box will appear. Enter a macro name (for example, test) and then click the “Create” button.
5. The VBA editor will open. Delete any existing code, and then paste the code you just copied.
6. Save and close the VBA editor.
That’s it for the setup. You only need to do this once.
How to Run the Macro
Open the Word file you want to add furigana to (e.g., a test or worksheet).
Go to the “View” tab and select “Macros” → “View Macros.”
From the list, select “Repeat10Times” and click the “Run” button.
The macro will now automatically start adding furigana to the kanji in your document from top to bottom. Just leave it running and you can go do other work. You can see this process in action in the YouTube video above.
This macro uses a repeating process to add furigana to most kanji, but it may not add it to the same kanji if it appears more than 20 times. In that case, you can either run the macro again or add the furigana manually.
Always make sure to do a final check of the content. It’s usually correct, but for example, “表” might be given the reading “おもて” when you wanted “ひょう.” Please double-check for these kinds of errors.
Inquiries & Requests
We want to make the wonders of science more accessible! We’ve put together fun science experiments you can do at home, along with easy-to-understand tips. Feel free to explore our articles!
・About the author, Ken Kuwako: Click here
・For business inquiries (writing, lectures, science workshops, TV supervision, appearances, etc.): Click here
・Get updates on new articles on X!
We post experiment videos on the Kagaku no Neta Channel!
４月のイチオシ実験！
- 光の魔法CMYウォーターキューブ：光の魔法を体験せよ！水を注ぐと新たな立方体が出現する魔法のような実験です。
テレビ番組・科学監修等のお知らせ
- 4月9日（木）「THE突破ファイル」（日本テレビ ）の科学監修を行いました。夜7時〜となります。
書籍のお知らせ
- サクセス15 ４月号にて、野球の科学について記事を執筆しました（2026/3）
- 『大人のための高校物理復習帳』（講談社）…一般向けに日常の物理について公式を元に紐解きました。特設サイトでは実験を多数紹介しています。※増刷がかかり６刷となりました（2026/02/01）
- 『きめる!共通テスト 物理基礎 改訂版』（学研）… 高校物理の参考書です。イラストを多くしてイメージが持てるように描きました。授業についていけない、物理が苦手、そんな生徒におすすめです。特設サイトはこちら。
講師・ショー・研究等のお知らせ
- 3/20（金） 日本理科教育学会オンライン全国大会2026「慣性の法則の概念形成を目指した探究的な学びの実践」について発表しました。
- 6/14（日） 千葉大学インスタレーション「探究」にて講師を務めます
- 7/18（土） 教員向け実験講習会「ナリカカサイエンスアカデミー」の講師をします。お会いしましょう。
- 10/10（土） 秘密兵器「帯電ガン」が炸裂！ビリビリ！ドキドキ！静電気サイエンスショー＠千葉市科学フェスタ（午後予定）
- 各種SNS X(Twitter)／instagram／Facebook／BlueSky／Threads
Explore
- 楽しい実験…お子さんと一緒に夢中になれるイチオシの科学実験を多数紹介しています。また、高校物理の理解を深めるための動画教材も用意しました。
- 理科の教材… 理科教師をバックアップ！授業の質を高め、準備を効率化するための選りすぐりの教材を紹介しています。
- Youtube…科学実験等の動画を配信しています。
- 科学ラジオ …科学トピックをほぼ毎日配信中！AI技術を駆使して作成した「耳で楽しむ科学」をお届けします。
- 講演 …全国各地で実験講習会・サイエンスショー等を行っています。
- About …「科学のネタ帳」のコンセプトや、運営者である桑子研のプロフィール・想いをまとめています。
- お問い合わせ …実験教室のご依頼、執筆・講演の相談、科学監修等はこちらのフォームからお寄せください。
- Shocking Truth: Can Humans Conduct Electricity? Let’s Try the Human Circuit Experiment! [Tamesu-kun]
- The Mystery of “Caloric”: From Middle School Myths to the Truth of Heat
- One LED, Seven Colors? Master the “Primary Colors of Light” with This Palm-Sized Experiment!
- Pinecone Magic! Craft an Eco-Friendly Christmas Tree & Discover Nature’s Secrets
- Spin to Soar! Master the Science of the DIY Gyro Plane
- Secret Mouths Hidden Beneath Leaves? Capture Stunning Stomata with Your Smartphone (Tradescantia Observation Guide)
- See the “Height” of Electricity!? Master Kirchhoff’s Laws in 3D (High School Physics)
- Master the Toughest Topic in Physics: Helical Motion! Break Free from the Textbook with 3D Graphs (Grapher & GeoGebra)
- Transform Your Lessons! Effortless & Crystal-Clear Mitosis Observation with Safranin Solution
