How to Say ‘May I sit next to you?’ in Japanese
隣、いいですか。
tonari ii desu ka
[toh-nah-ree ee dess kah]
🇯🇵 In Japan: This is a natural, low-pressure way to start talking to someone in a bar if there's an open seat. It comes off much better than a direct pickup line because you're asking for a small, reasonable thing first.
Phrase Breakdown
隣
tonari
[toh-nah-ree]
next to; beside
Points to the seat or space beside someone in this phrase asking to sit there.
隣、いいですかと自然に聞くとやわらかいです。
Asking “Is the seat next to you okay?” sounds natural and gentle.
いいですか
ii desu ka
Is it okay?; May I?
A polite way to ask for permission.
ここに入ってもいいですか。
May I enter here?
Words in this phrase
いい
ii
[ee]
good; okay
Here it means okay or acceptable when asking permission.
隣、いいですかの「いい」は許可をたずねる感じです。
The “ii” in “Tonari, ii desu ka” gives the feeling of asking permission.
です
desu
[dess]
is; am; are
Makes the phrase polite and appropriate for speaking to someone you just met.
隣、いいですかの「です」で丁寧になります。
The “desu” in “Tonari, ii desu ka” makes it polite.
か
ka
[kah]
question marker
Marks the sentence as a polite question.
隣、いいですかの最後の「か」で質問だとわかります。
The final “ka” shows that “Tonari, ii desu ka” is a question.
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