How to Say ‘Thank you very much.’ in Japanese
ありがとうございました。
arigatou gozai mashi ta
[ah-ree-gah-toh goh-zah-ee mah-shee ta]
🇯🇵 In Japan: The past form ございました is what people say once help is finished, such as after getting directions. Before or during the help, you'd say ありがとうございます.
Phrase Breakdown
ありがとう
arigatou
[ah-ree-gah-toh]
thank you
Casual “thank you.” For more polite: ありがとうございます.
手伝ってくれて、ありがとう。
Thanks for helping me.
ござい
gozai
[goh-zah-ee]
to be; to exist (polite part of expression)
A polite verb stem used in set phrases like greetings to sound respectful.
あいさつでは、ございをていねいに言います。
In greetings, you say gozai politely.
まし
mashi
[mah-shee]
polite past marker
まし is part of the polite past form ました.
働きましたのましは丁寧な過去です。
The 'mashi' in hatarakimashita is polite past.
た
ta
[ta]
past tense ending
This marks the action as completed in the past.
スタッフが来ました。
The staff member came.
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