How to Say ‘I see. (humble)’ in Japanese
さようでございますか。
sayou de gozai masu ka
[sah-YOH deh goh-zah-ee mahs kah]
💬 Usage Tip: This is the extra-polite version of そうですか (sō desu ka). さよう replaces そう, and でございます replaces です.
🇯🇵 In Japan: You'll hear this from staff, not say it yourself. As a customer, そうですか is fine.
Phrase Breakdown
さようで
sayou de
so / like that (formal)
Read 'sayou de'. The 'ou' is a long 'o'. It is a very formal version of そう.
さようでございます。
That is so.
Words in this phrase
さよう
sayou
[sah-YOH]
so; that way
Formal word meaning 'like that', used in polite speech instead of そう.
さようでございます。
That is so.
で
de
[deh]
(copula connector)
The で of the formal copula でございます.
こちらでございます。
Here it is.
ございますか。
gozai masu ka
is it? (very polite)
Read 'gozaimasu ka'. This is the honorific form of ですか, used by staff. Let the pitch rise slightly at the end.
お時間ございますか。
Do you have time?
Words in this phrase
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.
ます
masu
[mahs]
polite verb ending
A standard polite ending added to verbs, often used in customer service and formal speech.
予約を確認し ます。
I will confirm the reservation.
か
ka
[kah]
question marker
Placed at the end of a sentence to make it a question.
A席はありますか。
Are there A seats available?
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