How to Say ‘Nice to meet you, I'm Tanaka.’ in Japanese
はじめまして、田中です。
hajime mashi te tanaka desu
[ha-JEE-meh mah-shee te tah-NAH-kah dess]
💬 Usage Tip: はじめまして literally means "for the first time". You only say it the very first time you meet someone, never again with the same person.
Phrase Breakdown
はじめまして、
hajime mashi te
Nice to meet you.
A set greeting used when meeting someone for the first time. It is pronounced 'hajimemashite,' with even, flat syllables.
はじめまして、よろしくお願いします。
Nice to meet you. I look forward to working with you.
Words in this phrase
はじめ
hajime
[ha-JEE-meh]
first time; beginning
Stem of hajimeru 'to begin'; used in the first-meeting greeting.
はじめまして、山田です。
Nice to meet you, I'm Yamada.
まし
mashi
[mah-shee]
polite verb ending part
Part of polite verb forms used in formal speech.
丁寧に話しまし た。
I spoke politely.
て
te
[te]
indicates a connection
Connecting particle used in various grammatical structures.
駅に向かっている。
Heading towards the station.
田中です。
tanaka desu
I'm Tanaka.
田中 (Tanaka) is a common family name, and です (desu) means 'am' or 'is.' The final 'u' in desu is almost silent: 'des.'
営業部の田中です。
I'm Tanaka from the sales department.
Words in this phrase
田中
tanaka
[tah-NAH-kah]
Tanaka (surname)
A very common Japanese family name.
田中さんは会社員です。
Mr. Tanaka is an office worker.
です
desu
[dess]
is; am; are
A basic polite copula used to say 'is/am/are.'
田中です。
I am Tanaka.
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