literature

Text: Basic Phrases

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Literature Text

おはようございます
おはよう
Ohayou gozaimasu / ohayou
Good morning (formal) / 'Morning (informal)
Often said until 11 AM

こんにちは
Konnichiwa
Good afternoon
Often said from about 11 AM to 6 PM

こんばんは
Konbanwa
Good evening
Often said from about 6 PM and on

さようなら / じゃね、また / またね / バイバイ
Sayounara / ja ne, mata / mata ne / baibai
Good bye (formal) / Well, see you later (informal) / See you later (informal) / Bye bye (informal)

おやすみなさい / おやすみ
Oyasumi nasai / Oyasumi
Good night (formal) / 'Night (informal)
Said only when going to bed.

どうもありがとうございます
Doumo arigatou gozaimasu
ありがとうございます
Arigatou gozaimasu
どうもありがとう
Doumo arigatou
ありがとう
Arigatou
どうも
Doumo

All the above are different ways of saying 'thank you'. The top is the most formal and it trickles down to the least formal at the bottom. The most typically used ones are 'arigatou gozaimasu' and 'arigatou'.

どういたしまして
Dou itashimashite
You're welcome

すみません
Sumimasen
Excuse me / I'm sorry

いいえ / はい
Iie / hai
No / Yes
'Iie' can also be a response to 'arigatou' in that that it would mean 'you're welcome', 'it's okay' or 'it was no trouble', etc.

いってきます
Ittekimasu
Literally, "I'll go and come back". Said when leaving your house.

いってらっしゃい
Itterasshai
Literally, "Please go and come back". Said to the person leaving the house from the person staying home.

ただいま
Tadaima
I'm home/back.
Said when returning to your house.

おかえりなさい / おかえり
Okaeri nasai (formal) / Okaeri
Welcome home/back.
Said to person who returned by person/people who are home.

いただきます
Itadakimasu
Thank you for the meal. (Said before eating)

ごちそうさま
Gochisousama
Thank you for the meal. (Said after eating)

はじめまして
Hajimemashite
How do you do? (Said when first meeting someone)

どうぞよろしく
Douzoyoroshiku
Nice to meet you. (Said after 'hajimemashite' and more often after a self-introduction)

ごめんなさい / ごめんね / ごめん
Gomen nasai / gomen ne / gomen
I'm sorry (formal) / I'm sorry (informal) / Sorry (informal)

おめでとうございます
Omedetou gozaimasu
Congratulations (formal)

そうでうすか
Sou desu ka
Acknowledges that you understood what was said. "I see." or "Is that so?"
If you have any questions, comments, suggestions, etc., feel free to leave a comment below or send me a note. I’m no expert, but I will do my best to answer questions.

If you liked this feel free to :+fav: or comment!

If you see any mistakes please let me know!

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Yes, I know I could include a LOT more basic phrases/expressions, but I figured this covered the important ones and that's all I was aiming at.
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BubbleKirby77's avatar
こんにちは! Miku