How to Say ‘Where do people eat lunch?’ in Japanese
お昼ご飯は、どこで食べますか。
o hirugohan wa doko de tabe masu ka
[oh hee-roo-GOH-hahn wah doko de tah-BEH mahs kah]
🇯🇵 In Japan: Asking where people eat is a smart move in a new office. Some workplaces eat at their desks, others go out together, and joining in helps you fit in.
Phrase Breakdown
お昼ご飯は、
o hirugohan wa
as for lunch
'Ohiru gohan' means lunch. 'は' (wa) makes it the topic. Pause after it.
お昼ご飯は、もう食べました。
I already ate lunch.
Words in this phrase
お
o
[oh]
honorific prefix used in polite expressions
The polite prefix お makes the following word sound more courteous.
お願いできますか。
Could you please do that?
昼ご飯
hirugohan
[hee-roo-GOH-hahn]
lunch
Midday meal; often said with the polite prefix お.
昼ご飯を食べましょう。
Let's eat lunch.
は
wa
[wah]
topic marker; as for
Marks 'today' as the topic. Written は but pronounced 'wa.'
本日はお時間をいただき、ありがとうございます。
Thank you for giving me your time today.
どこで食べますか。
doko de tabe masu ka
where do you eat?
'Doko de' (at where) plus 'tabemasu ka' (do you eat). Say it smoothly with a rising end.
夕ご飯はどこで食べますか。
Where will you eat dinner?
Words in this phrase
どこ
doko
[doko]
where
A question word asking about a place or location.
どこに行きますか？
Where are you going?
で
de
[de]
at
Indicates the location of an action.
家で食事する。
Eat at home.
食べ
tabe
[tah-BEH]
eat (stem)
Stem of taberu 'to eat', used before polite endings.
一緒に食べましょう。
Let's eat together.
ます
masu
[mahs]
polite present/future ending
ます makes a verb polite in present or future statements.
予約します。
I will make a 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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