How to Say ‘Could you turn it down?’ in Japanese
小さくしてもらえますか。
chiisaku shi te morae masu ka
[CHEE-sah-koo shee teh mo-ra-e mahs ka]
💬 Usage Tip: 小さくする means "make small", and with sound it means turn down the volume. Likewise, 大きくする means turn it up.
Phrase Breakdown
小さくして
chiisaku shi te
turn it down / make it smaller
小さく (chiisaku) + して (shite) means 'make quieter/smaller'. Hold the long 'ii' in chiisaku.
音を小さくして。
Turn the volume down.
Words in this phrase
小さく
chiisaku
[CHEE-sah-koo]
small; quiet (adverbial form)
Adverbial form of 小さい; with する it means to make something smaller or quieter.
テレビの音を小さくします。
I turn the TV down.
し
shi
[shee]
do; make
The verb stem of する, attached to 交換 to form the action 'to exchange.'
名刺を交換したいです。
I want to exchange business cards.
て
te
[teh]
te-form ending
This ending connects actions, like 'cut and...' in instructions.
てをつけると、つぎのどうさにつなげられます。
When you add -te, you can connect it to the next action.
もらえますか。
morae masu ka
could you (do it for me)?
A polite request ending added to a te-form verb. Say mo-ra-e-ma-su-ka, with your voice rising slightly at the end.
手伝ってもらえますか。
Could you help me?
Words in this phrase
もらえ
morae
[mo-ra-e]
receive (benefit)
To obtain or get something, usually a service or information.
説明をもらえますか？
Can I receive an explanation?
ます
masu
[mahs]
polite verb ending
A standard polite ending added to verbs, often used in customer service and formal speech.
予約を確認し ます。
I will confirm the reservation.
か
ka
[ka]
question particle
Used to create a yes/no question in informal speech.
行くか？
Shall we go?
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