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Leto, can we go over the basic greetings in Japanese please?
Sure, let’s try to translate the daily greetings that we are using daily to Japanese!
Are you interested in speaking in Japanese? That’s great! You are on the right page!
On this page, I am going to introduce you some of the very basic greeting phrases that you should know, before you start learning Japanese.
Good morning, Thank you, hello, bye etc, After reading this page, you will be the master of the Japanese greeting phrases!
We will go over not the text book like phrases but the very natural phrases being used daily among us!
Japanese greetings & phrases｜The basic daily greetings that you should know!
I am going to give the examples of the greeting phrases dividing a day to morning, noon and evening.
Please just memorize the phrases by sounds!
朝 (あさ asa)／Morning／Mañana
Morning! my love. How did you sleep?
Buenos dias, mi amor! Dormiste bien?
おはよう！マニュ。よくねれた？
(Ohayo, Manuel. Yoku Nereta?)
Morning, sweetie. Yes, I slept well, thanks.
Buenos dias, querida. Si, dormí bien. Gracias.
おはよう！れと。よくねれたよ。
ありがとう
(Ohayo, yoku nereta -yo. Arigatou)
Don’t you have any word for “sweetie” or “querida” like English or Spanish?
No, unfortunately we don’t have any word to replace those words in Japanese…We simply call a partner by name.
Leto : おはよう！マニュ。よくねれた？
（Ohayo, Manuel. Yoku Nereta?）
| おはよう | Ohayo | Good morning |
| ねれた | Nereta | Slept |
| よく | yoku | well |
Manuel : おはよう！よくねれたよ。ありがとう
(Ohayo, Yoku nereta-yo, arigatou.）
| よ | yo | A sentence ender. (Yo is used when you are insisting something.) |
| ありがとう | Arigato | Thank you |
I have a question! Do Japanese bow each other with palms together at chest level? I have seen people doing it!
No…Chihuahua. That’s done in Thailand.
昼（ひる hiru）／Noon／mediodía
With senior level
Hello, Manuel. How are you?
Hola, Manuel, ¿Cómo estás?
マニュエル、こんにちは！げんきかい？
(Manuel, Konnichiwa, genki kai?)
Hello, Shigeo. I am good. How are you?
Hola, don Shigeo. yo estoy bien. ¿Cómo está usted?
シゲオさん、こんにちは。げんきです。おげんきですか？
(Shigeo-san, Konnichiwa, genki-desu. Ogenki desuka?)
Shigeo: マニュエル、こんにちは！げんきかい？
（Manuel, konnichiwa, genki-kai?）
| こんにちは | Kon-nichiwa | Hello |
| げんき | Genki | Fine |
| かい | Kai | question ending (Casual) |
Manuel: シゲオさん、こんにちは。げんきです。おげんきですか？
（Shigeo-san, Konnichiwa. genki desu. Ogenki desuka?）
| さん | san | Mr. |
| です | desu | Polite sentence ending |
| か | ka | A sentence ender of a question |
When you say こんにちは（Konnichiwa）, make sure to separate “ん” and “に”。
Japanese people do not link two sounds so that they do not recognize the sound konnichiwa if you do not separate kon and nichiwa clearly.
With friends
Hi! Manuel! How are you?
Hola, Manuel, ¿Qué Tal??
こんにちはー！マニュエル。げんき？
（Konnichiwa, Manuel. Genki?)
Hi, Katie, How are you? I’m Good, how about you?
Hola Katie, yo estoy bien, y vos que tal?
おー、ケイティー、げんきだよ！げんき？
（Oh, Katie, genki dayo, genki?)
Katie : こんにちはー！マニュエル。げんき？
（Konnichiwa, Manuel. Genki?）
Manuel： おー、ケイティー、げんきだよ！げんき？
（Oh, Katie, genki dayo! genki?）
| だよ | dayo | Casual ending particle after adjective |
夜（よる yoru）／Night／Noche
Oh, Manuel, good evening. Are you going home?
Ay, Manuel, buenas noches. Vuelves a casa?
あっ、マニュエル、こんばんは。いまかえり？
good evening, Pablo. Yes, I am going home.
Buenas noches, Pablo. Si, vuelvo a casa.
こんばんは、パブロ。うん、かえるところ！
I see, so see you tomorrow. Bye!
Veo. Entonces, hasta mañana. Adios!
そっか、じゃぁまたあしたね。バイバイ！
Yes, see you tomorrow!
Si, Hasta mañana!
うん、またあした！
Pablo : あっ、マニュエル、こんばんは。いまかえり？
（A, Manuel, Konbanwa, Ima kaeri?）
| こんばんは | Konbanwa | Good evening |
| いま | Ima | now |
| かえり | kaeri | going home（noun) |
Manuel： こんばんは、パブロ。うん、かえるところ！
（Konbanwa, Pablo. Un, Kaeru tokoro）
| はい／うん | Hai (Official or humble) / Un(Casual) | Yes |
| かえる | kaeru | going home(verb) |
| ところ | tokoro | moment (tokoro has two meanings: “Place” and “moment”.) |
Pablo : そっか、じゃぁまたあしたね。バイバイ！
（sokka, ja mata ashita ne. bye bye）
| そっか | Sokka | I see (Casual) |
| じゃぁ | jaa | then |
| また | mata | again |
| あした | ashita | tomorrow |
| ね | ne | ending particle to ask for agreement |
| バイバイ！ | baibai | Bye bye! |
Manuel：うん、またあした！
（Un, mata ashita!）
What is official/humble and casual way of talking of Japanese?
When you talk with someone senior than you, you have to use official/humble form in Japan.
If you don’t, you can be very very rude. I recommend you to use only humble form at the beginning.
Japanese greetings & phrases| Let’s use them online!
Japan offers you a lot. I am in and out all the time from my own country, Japan, and even though I was born and raised there, I still find something intriguing every time when I go there.
I am currently living on the east coast in the US, and what I miss most right now is… actually, some good Sushi:9 It is too typical but yes, that is what I miss the most. I have to say that it is almost impossible to find any decent good Sushi restaurant with decent prices here in the U.S. I also cannot stop thinking about those “not too sweet great sweets” that are available at even convenient stores in Japan. You may not feel the sweetness if you come from sugar oriented countries, but the quality of every sweet in Japan is just amazing.
The historical sites are also gorgeous and striking in Japan. For example, every time when I go to Kyoto, it just takes my breath away. The natural beauty of every historical site just makes you want to see the scenery forever. You may not actually be able to move away for a while. You cannot miss going to Kyoto, which I consider one of the most beautiful places on earth.
Sigh…I miss my family too!
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