Essential Japanese Phrases Must Know Words for Japan Travel YouTube

Konnichiwa. You're about to learn some super helpful phrases for your Japan trip. You will use them in many situations, especially at restaurants and convenience stores. Before we start, you should know that there are many different words you can use for the same thing. So if someone tells you how to say something different from what we're going to learn today, don't worry. It's probably just another way of how to say it. And it's okay if you don't speak perfect sentences. I certainly don't. The key is to try to be polite. Let's start with basic words to build a foundation. Hai means yes. Onegaishimasu means please. Use it in formal settings and is the more polite form of saying please. In Japan, speaking politely with people you don't know is very much appreciated. But onegaishimasu is not used in every instance. Here's where to use it. When requesting an object, like at a restaurant, you could ask, Ohashi onegaishimasu. Chopsticks, please. Again, this is the very polite way of asking. Onegaishimasu is also used when you're making a request for service. For instance, you want a taxi driver to take you to Tokyo station. Tokyo eki made onegaishimasu. Please take me to Tokyo station. Another word for please is kudasai. Kudasai is used in less formal situations. The literal translation is please give me, like when you're ordering at a restaurant. Mizu wo kudasai. Water, please. Mizu is water. Mizu wo kudasai. In this example, we could have used onegaishimasu. Mizu onegaishimasu. Both are correct. The only difference is kudasai is the more informal and onegaishimasu is more polite. Unless you're at a very high end restaurant or a formal setting, kudasai is perfectly fine. Daijoubu. Daijoubu. Daijoubu has many meanings, but it generally means it's okay, not necessary or I don't need it. For example, someone may ask you, Daijoubu desu ka? Is it okay? If it is okay, you can respond, Daijoubu desu. It's okay. At the market, the staff offers you a free sample chocolate. You can decline by saying, Daijoubu desu. It's okay. I don't need it. Arigatou gozaimasu. Arigatou gozaimasu. Arigatou gozaimasu. Thank you. While you can just say arigatou, it is much more polite to add arigatou gozaimasu. At a cafe, the staff offers you a free sample tea. You can accept it by responding, arigatou gozaimasu. Thank you. Sumimasen. Sumimasen. Sumimasen. Excuse me or sorry. You can use this to get the attention of someone, especially at restaurants. Raise your hand and say, sumimasen. Excuse me. Or if you accidentally bump into someone, you can say, sumimasen. Sorry. Another example is you're trying to squeeze through a crowded place. You can say, sumimasen. Excuse me. Doko? Where? Toire, doko desu ka? Where's the toilet? Or ATM, doko desu ka? Where's the ATM? Have you noticed how these questions end with ka? In Japanese, when you add ka to the end of the sentence, it turns it into a question. Sumimasen, tokyo eki wa doko desu ka? Tokyo eki? Hai. Hai, tokyo eki. Kono michi wo massugu itte, futatsu me no shingo hidari ni magatte, sore kara massugu itte, kousaten wo migi ni magatte, to hidari ni miemasu. Sumimasen, chotto matte kudasai? Hai. I'm sorry, could you say that one more time? Sumimasen, mou ichido itte itadakemasu ka? Hai. Kono michi wo massugu itte, futatsu me no shingo hidari ni magatte, sore kara massugu itte, kousaten wo migi ni magatte, to hidari ni miemasu. Wakarimashita ka? Yes. Go straight down this road, turn left at the second traffic light, then go straight and turn right at the intersection, and you will see it on your left. Do you understand? Yes, I understand. Thank you so much. Thank you to Time Kettle for sponsoring this video and sending us the WT2 Edge. As you can see, it's a set of earbuds that you can use along with their phone app for smooth language translation in 40 languages, including Japanese. What we just showed you was speaker mode, which is perfect for asking for directions because it saves the conversation as text, and you can refer back to it and even download it. So, if you can't remember all those directions, at least you can read it off your phone. Now, let's see an example using silent mode, where you and the person you're conversing with each wear an earbud. It's great to see you, Joji. It's been ages. Haru-san, hisashiburi desu ne? Haru-san, it's been a while. I know, too long. How have you been? Nadasugiru no wa wakatte imasu. Genki deshita ka? Genki desu. Arigatou. Demo, shigoto ga isogashikatta yo. I'm fine, thank you. But I was busy with work. I know the feeling. I've been busy, too. The WT2 Edge makes the conversation a lot more fluid. Although it's not quite in real time, at least you don't have to hold the phone between you and look at the phone. You can just look directly at the person that you're talking with. Follow our link in the description to learn more about the WT2 Edge by Time Kettle and use our promo code to get a discount. Now back to learning the basic words. Wakarimasen. Wakarimasen. Wakarimasen. I don't understand. In general, if a word ends in masen, it is the negative form of the word. If someone starts speaking to you in Japanese and you don't understand what they're saying, you can say sumimasen. Wakarimasen. Sorry, I don't understand. Or just wakarimasen. I don't understand. Wakarimasuka. Wakarimasuka. Do you understand? When you need help and you want to ask someone if they understand English, say sumimasen. Eigo ga wakarimasuka? Sumimasen. Eigo ga wakarimasuka? Excuse me, do you understand English? The most common response will be a little or they might say and they do usually make this gesture. This usually means they understand enough to help you. You can proceed to speak to them in English but please speak very slowly. Arimasu. Arimasu. Arimasu is the verb meaning to exist or to have and it's only for inanimate objects meaning they're not living. This is very useful when you're at a store and you're asking if they have something. For example, it starts raining so you run into the store and you ask kasa ga arimasu ka? Do you have umbrellas? Congratulations, you've made it through the basic words. Now let's go through some real world examples. Konbini, market, department store. In Japan, there's tons of different convenience stores such as 7-11, Family Mart, Lawson's, Daily Yamazaki and more. As soon as you enter any establishment whether it's a convenience store, restaurant, souvenir shop, the first thing you're which means welcome. You don't have to respond to this. You can just smile. You may want to buy a bento which is a packed meal usually in a box but you can't find them. Ask the clerk. Do you have bentos? When you go to the counter, the clerk will usually ask you a series of questions. First, they might ask do you need a plastic bag? Do you need a bag? Even if you don't understand everything the clerk just asked you, the key is to listen for fukuro or bukuro, both of which means bag. They're asking you if you need a bag. Also note there's a small charge for plastic bags. This is usually around 3 yen. If you want a bag, respond. If you don't want a bag, respond. It's okay. I don't need one. Or if you brought your own bag, you can show it to them and say daijoubu. Next, if you are buying items such as cooked prepared foods like the bento, the clerk will ask would you like your bento heated? You can respond with yes please or daijoubu. It's okay. Then if you bought prepared food, they may ask would you like chopsticks? Which means yes please or daijoubu which means I don't need it. You can also ask if they have a fork or a spoon. Do you have a fork? Do you have a spoon? Remember arimasu is the verb to have or to exist and is super useful. And when they tell you the total, you're probably not going to understand so instead just look at the screen. Notice that yen is pronounced en. And to save more questions, I recommend that you already have your form of payment ready, your credit card or cash in hand. This way, they're not going to have to ask you that question. Restaurant, irasshaimase, which again means welcome. The next thing they may say to you is nanmeisama desuka or nanmeisama deshouka? How many people? And this is how we count the number of people in your group. For one person, hitori. Two, futari. Three people, sannin. Four people, yonnin. And five people, gounin. If this is hard for you to remember, you can just show the number of fingers in your party. Since we're a family of five, we will say gounin desu. The host will either ask you to wait, shoushou omachi kudasai, just a moment please. Or they'll show you to your table, kochira e douzo, this way please. Once you're at the table, if this is a chain restaurant, they will most likely already have an English menu at the table. Or there will be a tablet with an English option. If not, you can ask for an English menu. Eigo no menu wa arimasu ka? Do you have an English menu? In smaller restaurants and many local izakayas, they will only have Japanese menus. So make sure that you have a translator app on your phone, like Google Translate with Google Lens. And please download the Japanese language pack ahead of time, because in some restaurants, you may not be able to get an internet connection. When you're ready to order, look to see if there's a call button on the table. If there is one, just go ahead and press it to call the waiter. Otherwise, you can raise your hand and say, sumimasen, excuse me. The waiter will ask you, gochumon wa okimari desu ka? Are you ready to order? If you are ready, say, hai, onegaishimasu. If you have a question about something, you can point to the item and say, kore wa nan desu ka? What is this? They'll do their best to explain it to you, even if they don't speak English. Or if you want a recommendation, say, osusume wa nan desu ka? What do you recommend? If you want to have the recommendation, respond, I would like that, please. To order from the menu, the easiest way is to point to the item you want to order and say, kore wo, the number of items, kudasai. So if you want to order one of these items, you would point to it and say, kore wo hitotsu kudasai. One of these, please. In Japanese, they have different words for counting food. It's not the same as counting people. For one item, it's hitotsu. Two items, futatsu. Three items, mitsu. Four items, yotsu. And five items, itsutsu. Two of these, kore wo mitsu. Three of these, and so on. And the absolute easiest way is just point to the item on the menu and say, kore wo kudasai, and raise the number of items you want. I want three of these, please. Did you notice how we're using kudasai here for please? Again, kudasai is fine because you are requesting to order food. And remember, the literal meaning is, please give me. Allergies. Are-ru-gi. Are-ru-gi. If you have an allergy, say the food that you're allergic to, plus are-ru-gi desu. For instance, pinatsu are-ru-gi desu. Allergic to peanuts. Seafood are-ru-gi desu. I'm allergic to seafood. Gruten are-ru-gi desu. I'm allergic to gluten. But do note, with gluten, it's already in most dishes. So your best bet may be to find a sushi restaurant or a gluten-free restaurant, which do exist. If you are vegetarian, I recommend that you also look for specific restaurants that serve vegetarian food. For those with allergies, look up the name of the food you cannot eat ahead of time so you know how to say it in Japanese. You can also print out food allergy information cards to carry with you. We'll link to some of those below. When you're done ordering, the waiter will say to you, kashiko marimashita. A polite way of saying, I got it. Payment. If the waiter left a bill at the table, then you will most likely go pay at the register. If you have a tablet, you'll need to press a button that says that you're done. Then, most likely go pay at the register. If you don't have the bill, you will most likely pay at the table. So you can say, okaike onegaishimasu. May I have the bill, please? Most chain restaurants will take credit card, but many smaller restaurants do not. So have cash ready. If you thought the meal was delicious, say, oishikatta desu. It was delicious. And when leaving, you can say, gochisousama deshita. Thank you for the meal. Both of these phrases will be greatly appreciated by the staff. That was a lot of information, so please watch this video again and again until you get it. Remember, if you learn the basic words, you will be able to use them in many situations. Next, you can go practice your Japanese, so watch our video on fun things to do in Japan. You'll have plenty of opportunities to practice. At Kensho Quest, we have tons of helpful videos for your trip to Japan, so be sure to subscribe. See you in the next one.