How to Say ‘How many people?’ in Japanese
何名様でしょうか。
nan mei sama deshou ka
[nan may sah-mah deh-shoh kah]
💬 Usage Tip: [何名様] is the polite service-industry way to ask how many people are in the party. Adding [でしょうか] makes it extra soft and customer-facing.
Phrase Breakdown
何名様
nan mei sama
how many people / guests
A very polite way to ask the number of people in a group.
何名様ですか。
How many people are you?
Words in this phrase
何
nan
[nan]
how many; what
Used to ask quantity; here, it begins a polite question about party size.
何名様でご来店の予定ですか。
How many people are planning to come to the restaurant?
名
mei
[may]
counter for people
Formal counter for people, often heard in restaurants and hotels.
二名で席をお願いします。
A table for two, please.
様
sama
[sah-mah]
honorific suffix
Adds politeness and respect when referring to customers.
店員さんはお客様を何名様と呼びます。
Staff refer to customers using the polite expression 'nanmei-sama.'
でしょうか
deshou ka
I wonder if; would it be ...?
A polite, indirect way to ask a question.
お名前でしょうか。
May I ask your name?
Words in this phrase
でしょう
deshou
[deh-shoh]
would it be; might it be
Softens a question and makes it more polite.
こちらのお席でよろしいでしょう。
Would this seat be all right?
か
ka
[kah]
question marker
Used at the end of a question.
特別メニューはありますか。
Do you have a special menu?
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