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🌅💼

How to Say ‘I work in the morning.’ in Japanese

午前は仕事です。

gozen wa shigoto desu

[GOH-zen wah shee-goh-toh dess]

💬 Usage Tip: Here は (said wa) sets the morning against the afternoon. It suggests "the morning's no good, though..." without having to say so.

🇯🇵 In Japan: Simply stating that you're busy, rather than saying "no", is the usual soft way to turn down a time in Japan.

Phrase Breakdown

午前

gozen

[GOH-zen]

morning; a.m.

The part of the day before noon.

Example

午前は忙しいです。

I'm busy in the morning.

は

wa

[wah]

topic marker; as for

Marks 'today' as the topic. Written は but pronounced 'wa.'

Example

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.

仕事

shigoto

[shee-goh-toh]

work; job

Refers to work, occupation, or a job role; common in business and career conversations.

Example

今は営業の仕事をしています。

Right now I work in sales.

です

desu

[dess]

is; am; are

A basic polite copula used to say 'is/am/are.'

Example

田中です。

I am Tanaka.

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