[Unit 1 Phrases] – Basic Communication

Top 10 Survival Phrases

There are many handy words to know but if you remember these 10, you can get by quite a bit. Read the explanations when and how to use them and try to remember these 10 before you go!

English	Japanese	Sound	Note
Excuse me	sumimasen		A very convenient phrase to: – attract attention (= Excuse me) – apologise (= Sorry) – thank (= Thank you)
Where?	doko?
When?	itsu?
What time?	nanji?
How much?	ikura?
It is OK?	ii_desuka?
Please	onegai_shimasu
I don’t know/understand.	wakarimasen
English, please!	Eigo onegaishimasu
I’m sorry.	Gomen nasai

Basic Pronunciation Guide

Japanese is one of the easiest language to pronounce as it has only 5 vowel sounds. They are:

vowel letter	sound
a
e
i
o
u

These 5 vowels are almost always pronounced in the same way regardless of the letter/sound before and after, except for the following exceptions.

• When “u” follows the sound ending “o” ⇒ sounds like “o” + “o”
  example: Arigatou. (= thank you)
  
  The last “u” is pronounced like another “o”.
• When the word ends in “su” ⇒ sounds more like just “s”.
  example: Arigatou gozaimasu. (= thank you very much)
  
  Some people do pronounce the ending “u” all the time and even those people who usually skip “u” will start adding it as they repeat the phrase, especially when they go slower. This is because the vowel sound “u” is included in the written language. Modern people just don’t pronounce it any more.
  

Useful Phrases for Basic Communication

Yes	hai
No	iie		This is a 3-syllable word. Try to say i, i, e separately.
Do you speak English?	Eigo o hanashi_masu_ka.
I don’t understand Japanese.	nihongo ga wakari_masen.
One more time, please.	mou ichido onegai shimasu.
Thank you.	Arigatou.
Thank you very much.	Doumo Arigatou.
Thank you very much.	Arigatou gozaimasu.		For something that is happening now or is going to happen.
Thank you very much. (for something completed)	Arigatou gozaimashita.		For something that has already happened.
No, thank you.	Kekkou desu. Arigatou.
You are welcome.	Dou Itashimashite.		Pronounce it like “Dough it ash mashy teh!.”
Are you OK?	Daijoubu?		Please will ask like this if you don’t look OK.
I’m OK.	Daijoubu_desu.
I’m not OK.	Daijoubu_janai_desu.		By saying this first, people will try to figure out what’s wrong.
My name is Mary.	Watashi no namae wa Mary desu.		Please swap “Mary” with your own name.*
How do you do? Nice to meet you.	Hajimemashite. Douzo yoroshiku.		One time only per person.
Good morning.	Ohayou gozaimasu.		Until about 10 am.
Hello (between around 10am and dusk).	Konnichiwa.		From around 10 am till dusk.
Hello (after dark)	konbanwa.		After dark.
Good night (before going to bed)	Oyasuminasai.		This is an expression to wish a good SLEEP, not a good time at night.
Good bye (Have a good time!)	Itterasshai		For detailed explanation, please watch this short video.
Good bye (farewell)	Sayounara

* When people say only one of their own names, English speakers tend to say their first name, but Japanese people are likely to say their surname. If you are interested in introducing yourself in Japanese, keep reading. Otherwise, go to the next page.

Simple Self-Introduction

Here are expressions you can use to introduce yourself. I could not list the names of all countries in the World, so I have listed regions. I’m sorry if I missed your country.

I am [your name].	Watashi wa [your name] desu.		Please replace [ ] with your own name.
I’m from [Australia].	[Oosutoraria] kara kimashita.		Please replace [Oosutoraria] with your own country/region.
USA	Amerika
UK	Igirisu
Canada	Kanada
New Zealand	Nyuujiirando
Europe	Yooroppa
Africa	Ahurika		The Japanese language does not have “f” sound. “f” is pronounced more like “wh.”
Asia	Ajia
South America	Minami Amerika