How do you say "Could you turn it down a bit?" in Japanese?

"Could you turn it down a bit?" in Japanese is "少し小さくしてもらえますか。". This phrase is commonly used in Japan.

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How to Say ‘Could you turn it down a bit?’ in Japanese

Q: What does "少し小さくしてもらえますか。" mean in English?

"少し小さくしてもらえますか。" means "Could you turn it down a bit?" in English. Usage tip: [小さくしてもらえますか] uses [〜してもらえますか] to ask for a favor in a softer way than a direct command. It's a good pattern for polite requests: [少し待ってもらえますか] = "could you wait a moment?"

少し小さくしてもらえますか。

sukoshi chiisaku shi te morae masu ka

[skoo-shee chee-sah-koo]

💬 Usage Tip: [小さくしてもらえますか] uses [〜してもらえますか] to ask for a favor in a softer way than a direct command. It's a good pattern for polite requests: [少し待ってもらえますか] = "could you wait a moment?"

🇯🇵 In Japan: For a neighbor complaint, this lands friendly and reasonable, especially with [少し]. It asks for cooperation rather than sounding like an order.

Phrase Breakdown

少し

sukoshi

[skoo-shee]

a little; a bit

Used to soften a request ("just a little"). In noise situations, it makes your ask sound gentle and reasonable.

Example

音楽の音、少し小さくしてもらえますか。

Could you turn the music down a little?

小さく

chiisaku

[chee-sah-koo]

quietly; smaller; lower (volume)

Adverb form of 小さい. With volume, it means “turn it down / make it quieter.” Common with 音・音量・声.

Example

夜なので小さくしてもらえますか。

Since it’s night, could you turn it down?

してもらえますか

could you do (it) for me?

Polite request pattern: V-て + もらえますか. Asks someone to do something as a favor (softer than 命令).

Example

ここに名前を書いてもらえますか。

Could you write your name here for me?

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