Japanese greetings and polite phrases
Japanese has no one-size-fits-all “hi”: the greeting changes with the time of day, with who you are talking to and with what you are doing — leaving the house, coming home, sitting down to eat, finishing work. Each of those moments has its own set phrase, and Japanese people really do use them, every day.
Here are the essential greetings and polite phrases, written in kana (with kanji where they are used) and in rōmaji for pronunciation, with what they mean, when they are said and the register of each form.
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- Formalwith strangers, customers and superiors
- Neutralfine with anyone
- Casualwith friends and family
Good morning, good evening, good night
The greeting depends first of all on the time: there is one for the morning, one for the daytime, one for the evening and one for going to bed.
| Japanese | Meaning and use |
|---|---|
おはようございますFormal ohayō gozaimasu おはようCasual ohayō | Good morning Until about 10–11 a.m. おはよう with friends and family. In some jobs, such as restaurants and show business, it is the first greeting of a shift at any hour. |
こんにちはNeutral konnichiwa | Hello, good afternoon From mid-morning until sunset, when you meet someone. It is not used with family or with colleagues you see every day: it would sound distant. |
こんばんはNeutral konbanwa | Good evening From sunset on, when you meet someone. It is not a goodbye: when you leave in the evening you need a parting phrase. |
おやすみなさいFormal oyasumi nasai おやすみCasual oyasumi | Good night Before going to bed, or when parting late at night. おやすみ with friends and family. |
Saying goodbye
さようなら is the famous one, but it is also the one people use least: friends part with じゃあね or またね.
| Japanese | Meaning and use |
|---|---|
さようならNeutral sayōnara | Goodbye, farewell For a long or final parting; schoolchildren say it to the teacher at the end of the day. Between adults who will see each other soon it sounds cold. |
じゃあねCasual jā ne | Bye, see you Between friends and family, when you part. Even shorter: じゃ (ja). |
またねCasual mata ne | See you, see you next time Between friends, often together: じゃあ、またね. “See you tomorrow” is また明日 (mata ashita). |
Introducing yourself
Two set phrases open and close every introduction, with your name in between: はじめまして、エマです。よろしくお願いします。
| Japanese | Meaning and use |
|---|---|
はじめましてNeutral hajimemashite | Nice to meet you Only the first time you meet someone, at the start of an introduction. Also written 初めまして. |
よろしくお願いしますFormal よろしくおねがいします · yoroshiku onegai shimasu よろしくCasual yoroshiku | Nice to meet you, I'm counting on you Closes an introduction and goes with any request or new collaboration. More formal: どうぞよろしくお願いします; よろしく between peers. |
Thank you, sorry, please
The phrases you will hear more than any others. Watch out for すみません: besides “excuse me” it also means “thank you”.
| Japanese | Meaning and use |
|---|---|
ありがとうございますFormal arigatō gozaimasu ありがとうCasual arigatō | Thank you ありがとうございます works with almost anyone; ありがとう with friends and family. For something already done you say ありがとうございました. |
どういたしましてNeutral dō itashimashite | You're welcome Correct but a bit textbook: in everyday life people more often answer いえいえ (ie ie, “oh, not at all”). |
すみませんFormal sumimasen | Excuse me, sorry, thank you For a small inconvenience, to call a waiter, to get past someone and also to thank someone who went out of their way for you. With strangers and at work. |
ごめんなさいNeutral gomen nasai ごめんCasual gomen | I'm sorry, forgive me To apologize to someone close for something you did; ごめん between friends. With customers and superiors you use すみません or 申し訳ありません (mōshiwake arimasen). |
お願いしますFormal おねがいします · onegai shimasu | Please To ask for something or for a service: コーヒー、お願いします (“a coffee, please”). It is also said on its own when handing something over or entrusting a task. |
どうぞNeutral dōzo | Please, go ahead, here you are When offering something, letting someone go first or inviting them in: it is the “please” of the one giving, not a reply to thank you. |
At home and at the table
Phrases for two voices: whoever leaves, comes home or sits down to eat says their line, and whoever stays answers. They are said every day, always the same.
| Japanese | Meaning and use |
|---|---|
いただきますNeutral itadakimasu | “I humbly receive” (before eating) Said by the person eating, often with hands together, before the first bite: it gives thanks for the food and for whoever made it. It is not a wish to others like “enjoy your meal”: people say it when eating alone too. |
ごちそうさまでしたFormal gochisōsama deshita ごちそうさまCasual gochisōsama | “Thank you for the meal” (after eating) At the end of a meal, to whoever cooked or paid, and also to the staff when leaving a restaurant. ごちそうさま with family and friends. |
行ってきますNeutral いってきます · ittekimasu | I'm off (and I'll be back) When leaving home in the morning, or the office on an errand: it announces that you will come back. Whoever stays answers 行ってらっしゃい. |
行ってらっしゃいNeutral いってらっしゃい · itterasshai | See you later, have a good day The reply of whoever stays to 行ってきます. Hotel staff say it to guests going out, as いってらっしゃいませ. |
ただいまNeutral tadaima | I'm home When you come home, or back to the office from outside. Literally “just now”, short for “I have just come back”. |
おかえりなさいFormal okaeri nasai おかえりCasual okaeri | Welcome home The reply to ただいま from whoever is already home. おかえり in the family; also written お帰りなさい. |
At work and on the phone
Between colleagues the greeting is not “good morning” but an acknowledgment of the other person's hard work.
| Japanese | Meaning and use |
|---|---|
お疲れさまですFormal おつかれさまです · otsukaresama desu お疲れさまCasual おつかれさま · otsukaresama | Thanks for your hard work Between colleagues: passing each other during the day, closing a meeting, at the end of the day (お疲れさまでした). It acknowledges the other person's effort; お疲れさま between peers. |
失礼しますFormal しつれいします · shitsurei shimasu | Excuse me (for intruding / for leaving) Entering or leaving a superior's room, or ending a work call. When leaving before your colleagues: お先に失礼します (osaki ni shitsurei shimasu). |
もしもしNeutral moshi moshi | Hello? (on the phone) Only on the phone, mostly between friends and family: a company answering the phone says its own name instead. Never used face to face. |
How to pronounce them: long vowels, ん and the vanishing u
The line over a vowel in rōmaji (ohayō, arigatō, sayōnara) marks a long vowel: in kana it is written twice, おはよう is o-ha-yo-o, and it is held twice as long. In こんにちは the ん counts as a syllable of its own: kon-ni-chi-wa, with two distinct n sounds. The final u of です and ます, on the other hand, is barely heard: ありがとうございます sounds like “arigatō gozaimass”.
Why こんにちは is written with は but read wa
こんにちは and こんばんは are the opening of longer sentences nobody says in full anymore: 今日は… (“as for today…”) and 今晩は… (“as for this evening…”). That は is the topic particle, which is always read wa. The spelling こんにちわ does turn up, even in Japan, but it is considered wrong.
The bow is part of the greeting
In Japan a greeting almost always comes with a bow (お辞儀, ojigi), and it counts as much as the words: about 15 degrees between acquaintances, 30 with customers and superiors, up to 45 for serious apologies and thanks. Handshakes exist, mostly in business with foreigners. Nobody expects a foreigner to get the angle right: a slight bow while saying こんにちは is enough and makes a great impression.
すみません to say thank you
When someone goes out of their way for you — picks up something you dropped, holds the door, gives up their seat — many Japanese people say すみません rather than ありがとう: instead of the favor received, they acknowledge the trouble caused. It is not an apology, it is a modest thank you. The same すみません calls a waiter and gets you through a crowd: it may well be the most useful word you can learn.
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Frequently asked questions
It depends on what you are asking for. お願いします (onegai shimasu) to ask for something or for a service: お水、お願いします (“some water, please”). ください (kudasai) after a thing, これをください (“this one, please”), or after a verb in the te form: 待ってください (“please wait”). どうぞ (dōzo), on the other hand, is the “please” of someone offering.
No: after sunset you say こんばんは (konbanwa), and in the morning おはようございます (ohayō gozaimasu). こんにちは covers roughly 10–11 a.m. until it gets dark. The boundaries are not strict, but konnichiwa at nine in the evening sounds odd.
すみません (sumimasen) is polite and used with strangers, customers and superiors: for small inconveniences, to get someone's attention, to say thanks. ごめんなさい (gomen nasai) is more personal: it asks someone close to forgive something you did. For a serious apology at work you use 申し訳ありません (mōshiwake arimasen).
There is no single “hi”. When you meet someone you use the greeting for the time of day: おはよう in the morning, こんにちは during the day, こんばんは in the evening. When leaving, between friends, じゃあね or またね. さようなら is more “farewell” than “bye”.
Less than you would think: it sounds like a long or final parting. Schoolchildren say it to the teacher at the end of the day; friends and colleagues use じゃあね, またね or, at work, お疲れさまでした and お先に失礼します.
The textbook answer is どういたしまして (dō itashimashite), but in real life you will more often hear いえいえ (ie ie, “oh, not at all”), maybe with a small bow.