Telling neighbors their music is too loud: The friendly ask
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Key Phrases
すみません。／こんにちは。
sumi mase n konnichiwa
Excuse me. / Hello.
どうしましたか。／そうですか。
dou shi mashi ta ka sou desu ka
What’s the matter? / Is it loud?
少し小さくしてもらえますか。
sukoshi chiisaku shi te morae masu ka
Could you turn it down a bit?
Skills You'll Learn
Politely get someone’s attention and introduce yourself as a neighbor.
丁寧に声をかけて、となりの住人として自己紹介する。
teinei ni koe o kake te tonari no juunin to shi te jiko shoukai suru
Ask what’s wrong and describe a possible issue (noise/music) in a soft, non-accusatory way.
状況を確認し、音楽・音などの問題をやわらかく伝える（〜かもしれません）。
joukyou o kakunin shi ongaku oto nado no mondai o yawarakaku tsutaeru
Make a polite request, respond/apologize, and close the conversation as good neighbors.
丁寧にお願いする・謝る／感謝する・今すぐ対応する・近所づきあいの言い方で締める（ご近所ですからね）。
teinei ni o negai suru ayamaru kansha suru ima sugu taiou suru kinjo zukiai no ii kata de shimeru
Lesson Roleplay
Imagine you’re visiting your neighbor to politely mention that their music is a bit loud and ask if they could turn it down, and they respond apologetically and agree to lower the volume.
すみません。となりの Emily です。
sumi mase n tonari no ^FIRST^ desu
Excuse me. I'm Emily from next door.
あ、こんにちは。どうしましたか。
a konnichiwa dou shi mashi ta ka
Oh, hello. What's the matter?
いま、音楽の音が少し大きいかもしれません。
ima ongaku no oto ga sukoshi ookii ka mo shire mase n
The music might be a little loud right now.
えっ、そうですか。ごめんなさい。
etsu sou desu ka gomen nasai
Oh, is it? I'm sorry.
よかったら、少し小さくしてもらえますか。
yokatsu tara sukoshi chiisaku shi te morae masu ka
If you don't mind, could you turn it down a bit?
Lesson Vocabulary & Phrases
すみません。
sumi mase n
Excuse me.
となりの Emily Smith です。
tonari no ^FIRST^ ^LAST^ desu
I’m Emily Smith.
💬 [となりの ^FIRST^ ^LAST^ です] literally means "[I'm] the ^FIRST^ ^LAST^ from next door." Put [の] after a place or relation to describe a person: [会社の田中です] = "I'm Tanaka from the company."
See breakdown →となり
tonari
Next door
こんにちは。
konnichiwa
Hello.
どう
dou
How / what
しました
shi mashi ta
Did (polite past form of する)
💬 [しました] is the polite past of [する], but in [どうしましたか] it doesn't literally mean "what did you do?" This whole pattern means "what happened?" or "what's the matter?".
See breakdown →どうしましたか。
dou shi mashi ta ka
What’s the matter?
💬 [どうしましたか] is a set phrase for asking what's wrong, not a literal question about what someone did. You can reuse the same pattern in many situations when something seems off.
See breakdown →いま
ima
Now
音楽
ongaku
Music
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