Basic directions: Asking for directions

💬 を is said (o), not (wo). With movement words it marks the path you travel along, as in この道を行く "go along this road".

💬 The small っ adds a held beat: (massugu), not (masugu).

💬 Note the small っ: (itte), with a short held pause before the (t). Changing a verb to its て form and adding ください turns it into a polite request: 待ってください "please wait".

🇯🇵 Japanese people often call the green light 青 "blue", so don't be thrown if someone says the light is blue.

💬 Add 目 (me) after a count to make it an order: 一つ目 (hitotsu-me) "the first", 三つ目の角 "the third corner".

💬 に marks the direction you turn toward. Swap in 左 (hidari) "left" to get 左に曲がってください.

🇯🇵 Japanese directions usually go by landmarks like traffic lights, convenience stores and corners, not street names. Most streets in Japan don't have names.

💬 Swap 遠い for its opposite 近い (chikai) "near" to ask 近いですか "Is it close?"

💬 This comes from 歩く "to walk", so it's really "walking". Compare 電車で "by train" for other ways of getting there.

💬 ぐらい goes after the amount, not before it: 十分ぐらい "about ten minutes". You'll also hear it as くらい (kurai), with the same meaning.

💬 五分 is said (go-fun), not (go-pun).

💬 The よ at the end adds a friendly "you know" or "don't worry" feel. It signals that the speaker is telling you something new.

💬 This is in the past form, literally "I've understood". That's the natural way to say "got it" right after someone explains something.

🇯🇵 Locals say this warmly when sending someone off, like a parting "go safely". A simple ありがとうございます "thank you very much" with a small bow is the natural reply.