How to Say ‘Today is my day off work.’ in Japanese
今日は仕事が休みです。
kyou wa shigoto ga yasumi desu
[kyoh wah shee-goh-toh gah yah-soo-mee dess]
💬 Usage Tip: Structure: [今日は] (as for today) + [仕事が休みです]. A smooth reason intro.
🇯🇵 In Japan: For a planned school absence, you might add a polite reason: [今日は仕事が休みなので、家族で過ごします]. Some schools may still treat this as “personal reasons,” which is normal.
Phrase Breakdown
今日
kyou
[kyoh]
today
Noun meaning “today.” Often used with は to set the topic: 今日は…
今日は仕事が休みです。
Today I have the day off work.
は
wa
[wah]
(topic marker)
Marks the topic: 今日は… “As for today, …”. Common in explanations on the phone.
今日は欠席します。
As for today, (they) will be absent.
仕事
shigoto
[shee-goh-toh]
work; job
Noun “work.” Used with が休み to mean “off work.”
今日は仕事が休みです。
Today I have the day off work.
が
ga
[gah]
(subject marker)
Marks 仕事 as the subject in “work is off.”
仕事が休みです。
I’m off work.
休み
yasumi
[yah-soo-mee]
day off; break; holiday
Noun “day off.” In this sentence it indicates you are not working today.
今日は仕事が休みです。
Today I have the day off work.
です
desu
[dess]
is; polite copula
Polite ending that makes the statement formal and appropriate for speaking to school staff.
今日は仕事が休みです。
Today I have the day off work.
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