Cursive N (Capital & Lowercase)

How to Write a Capital N in Cursive

1. Start with a small hook. Put your pencil on the left, a little below the top line, and curl a short hook up and over to the right.
2. Make the first hump. Round over the top line and pull a long, slanted stroke down to the baseline. This is the left leg of the N.
3. Retrace and go over again. Without lifting, go back up the same stroke and curve over the top line a second time. Make this hump the same height as the first.
4. Bring down the last stroke. Pull the second downstroke toward the baseline, parallel to the first one.
5. Round off and exit. Curve the stroke at the baseline and swing up to the right. Keep your pencil down if another letter follows.

How to Write n in Cursive (Lowercase)

1. Start just below the midline. When n stands alone, it starts with a small hook under the dashed midline. In a word, the joining stroke from the previous letter takes you here.
2. Make the first hump. Curve over the midline and pull a straight, slanted stroke down to the baseline.
3. Retrace and make the second hump. Go back up the stroke you just drew, round over the midline again and come down to the baseline.
4. Stop at two. The lowercase n has exactly two humps. Make them the same width so the letter looks balanced.
5. Exit to the right. Round off at the baseline and sweep up toward the next letter.

Common Mistakes With Cursive N

Cursive N is short and simple, which is exactly why small slips stand out. Watch for these.

• Adding a third hump. Three humps make an m. If you write fast, slow down for a moment at the second hump and stop there.
• Sharp tops. Pointed humps make the n look like a cursive v or u. The tops should be smooth and round.
• Skipping the retrace. The second hump begins by going back up the first downstroke. Leaving a gap makes the n look like two separate strokes.
• A short capital. Both humps of the capital N should reach the top line. If the second one stops at the midline, the letter looks like a big lowercase n.
• Rushing the exit. The last stroke needs a clear curve at the baseline. Without it, the join to the next letter turns into a sharp angle.

How Cursive N Connects to Other Letters

In the traditional style, both forms of N join the next letter. The capital N ends with a curve at the baseline that runs straight on, as in Nora and Noah, so you don't need to lift your pencil after the capital.

Joining into a lowercase n is easy because the connecting stroke simply rises into the first hump. Look at dinner: the double n is four even humps in a row, and keeping them the same size is what makes the word readable.

After o, w, v and b, the join leaves from the midline and slides across into the first hump instead of climbing from the baseline. You can see that short bridge in bone.

Copy and Paste Cursive N Symbols

These are Unicode symbols, not real handwriting. They look like script and paste into most apps, but each symbol is a separate character, so they won't join the way handwriting does. Use them for names, bios and captions.

• 𝒩𝒾𝒸ℯCopy
• 𝒩𝒾ℊ𝒽𝓉 𝒮𝓀𝓎Copy
• 𝒩ℴ𝓋𝒶Copy
• 𝒩ℯ𝓋ℯ𝓇 𝒮𝓉ℴ𝓅Copy

Words That Start With N

Since n shows up in so many words, it's a good letter to practice in whole words rather than on its own. Start short and work up to double n.

• Short words: nap, net, nut, nose, nest, nine, new, now
• Longer words: napkin, number, nature, needle, notebook, nephew, noodle, nickel
• Double n and middle n: dinner, funny, tunnel, sunny, penny, bone, honey, window
• Names and places: Noah, Nora, Nina, Nathan, Nepal, Norway, Nevada, November

Words like dinner and funny are the best test of a cursive n. If the four humps in the middle look even, your n is ready.