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🛒

How to Say ‘Buy’ in Japanese

を買います

o kai masu

[o kai mahs]

💬 Usage Tip: [買います] means "buy," and [を] marks the thing being bought. Very useful everyday pattern.

🇯🇵 In Japan: Using polite [〜ます] forms like [買います] is a safe and natural choice in many situations.

Phrase Breakdown

o

[o]

object marker

The particle を marks the direct object, the thing you buy, eat, or do.

Example

ケーキをかいます。

I buy a cake.

買い

kai

[kai]

buy

The stem of 買います, meaning to buy. It combines with ます for a polite verb form.

Example

プレゼントを買いにいきます。

I go to buy a present.

ます

masu

[mahs]

polite verb ending

A polite ending used with verb stems in present/future tense.

Example

ケーキを買います。

I buy a cake.

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