Common Japanese Phrases Flashcards

1
Q

こんにちは

A

Hello

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2
Q

おはようございます

A
Good Morning
(A formal way to greet someone in the morning, you’ll use this with co-workers, strangers, or superiors. With friends and family, you can shorten it by saying (おはよう! : “‘Morning!”)
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3
Q

こんばんは

A

Good Evening

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4
Q

______-さんも?

A

And you?

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5
Q

ごめんなさい

A

I’m sorry
(It is less “excuse me” and more “I’m truly sorry from the bottom of my heart.” Use it if you knocked something over and broke it, not if you interrupted someone’s stroll to ask for directions. You can also say it more casually as, ごめんね (“sorry”).

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6
Q

すみません

A

I’m sorry/excuse me
(You can use this for anything from apologising for stumbling into someone on the train to asking for help or asking for people to move out of your way.)

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7
Q

ありがとうございます

A

Thank you

(There are several ways to say thank you, but this is the most polite way. With friends, you can say ありがとう or ども

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8
Q

どういたしまして

A

Your welcome

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9
Q

よろしくおねがいします

A

I’m in your debt!
(This isn’t used in its literal sense most of the time; it’s a way to say “thank you” to someone you are counting on or indebted to. For example, if you’re starting out at a new job in Japan, you might introduce yourself and then add this at the end. You might also use it if you’ve asked someone a favour, such as to show you around or give you directions.)

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10
Q

いただきます

A

Let’s dig in

Say this before meals as a way to politely say you’re going to begin enjoying your food.

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11
Q

どこですか

A

Where is it?

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12
Q

今何時ですか (いまなんじですか)

A

What time is it now?

When asking a stranger, sayすみません first to get their attention

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13
Q

はい,うん

A

Yes

You use はい when speaking formally, and うん when speaking with friends

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14
Q

いいえ,ううん

A

No
(Like with “yes,” いいえ is more formal, and ううん is casual. You don’t actually hear いいえ that often though, because it’s too direct in formal situations. Instead, you say “ちょっと…” (Chotto: “It’s a bit… [inconvenient, not good for me]”)

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15
Q

まだまだ

A

Not yet

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16
Q

かもしれません

A

Maybe/I’m not sure

17
Q

いいですよ

A

It’s good
(You can omit or change the ending — よ at the end of a sentence makes it a stronger statement. You could also use ね to say “huh?” or “right?”)

18
Q

_ です

A

_ I am
(A very basic, but versatile sentence! You can add anything to describe yourself before です which means “is, to be.” You could say 二十七です (“I am 27 years old”). You could also use it to describe other things, like いいほんです (“A good book”).

19
Q

だめです

A

It’s bad

Like with “it’s good,” you can add よto the end to make it stronger, or ね to ask for agreement

20
Q

わかりません

A

I don’t understand

21
Q

あー、___さん

A

Ah, Mr./Mrs
(Although it may sound strange to speakers in English, greeting someone with just “Ah!” like you’re surprised to see them is most common. You greet them with this exclamation and their name, followed by the appropriate suffix (“-san” is standard and good to use for most people). You follow it with a question, like asking about the weather)

22
Q

じゃまた

A

See you later
(Although you probably know さようなら is “goodbye,” it has a very strong sense of finality, almost like you may not see that person again. So it’s often better to say じゃまた. Other variations are じゃね (“see you”), バイバイ (“bye-bye”), and お元気で (“take care”)

23
Q

失礼します (しつねい します)

A

Please excuse me (for leaving)
(When you leave ahead of someone else, you say this as an apology for leaving before them. Especially at work, you always want to say this before leaving because you’re leaving them to finish the work for the day)

24
Q

行ってきます (いってきます)

A

I’m going

Say this to family at home, friends, or co-workers to announce you’re heading out

25
Q

良かった (よかった)

A

Great\I’m glad
(Use this as a reply when someone tells you something good happened, or as a sigh of relief when something works out in a good way)

26
Q

どうぞ, お願いします(おねがいします) , ください

A

Please
(The word for “please” changes with intent. どうぞ is the most straight forward. You use this word when you are offering something to someone else. Like, “お先にどうぞ” (“Please, you first” or “Please, after you”).

お願いします and ください are used almost interchangeably but have different formality. お願いします is used to ask a request of someone with higher status than you, or for a service (because those offering services are usually considered to have higher status). So if you make a request of your boss, or take a taxi ride, you would use お願いします.

ください is used when you ask a request of someone close to you, like a friend, or when what you ask for is expected, like when ordering at a restaurant. You also use ください whenever the verb it follows is in て-form, like ちょっと待(ま)ってください ( “please wait”), no matter the formality)

27
Q

The 5 Ws

A
誰 (だれ) - Who
何 (なに,なん) - What
いつ - When
どこ - Where
どうして - Why
28
Q

どちら

A

Which

29
Q

いくらですか

A

How much is it?

30
Q

はどこですか

A

Where is the_?

A useful expression if you’re lost, unsure, or need to know where something is.

31
Q

これは何ですか (これはなんですか)

A

What is this?

32
Q

これは何意味ですか (これはなんいみですか)

A

What does this mean

33
Q

_ がありますか

A

Do you have_

(If you’re talking to a friend, you can shorten it by saying があるの?