Top 50 phrases to get by Japan (Advanced): Essential communication

💬 Adding ございます to a phrase makes it polite: compare おはよう with おはようございます.

🇯🇵 It is the all-purpose phrase for getting a waiter's attention, squeezing past someone, apologizing, or even thanking someone who went out of their way for you. In casual speech it often sounds like (suimasen).

🇯🇵 This is a personal apology for something you did wrong, and it sounds a bit soft, almost childlike. With strangers or in business, people say すみません or 申し訳ありません "I'm very sorry" instead.

🇯🇵 You use it when offering something: holding a door open, handing over an item, or letting someone go first. It is not used for asking for things. For that, use お願いします.

🇯🇵 It is rarely heard in everyday life because it can sound stiff. People usually wave off thanks with いえいえ "no, no".

🇯🇵 It is only said the very first time you meet someone, usually followed by your name and then よろしくお願いします.

🇯🇵 Japanese speakers usually leave out "I" when it's obvious, and saying 私 too often can sound heavy. It is still the safe, neutral choice when you do need it.

💬 は here is said (wa). Swap in any name or noun: 私は学生です "I am a student."

🇯🇵 There is no real English equivalent. It roughly means "I'm counting on our good relationship," and it closes self-introductions, requests and business emails.

💬 Add 語 (go) to a country name to get its language: 英語 (eigo) "English", 中国語 (chūgokugo) "Chinese".

🇯🇵 Besides "I understand," it is the standard way to say "Got it, will do" when someone gives you instructions or a request.

💬 The ません ending turns a verb negative and polite: 話せます "can speak" becomes 話せません "can't speak".

💬 With "can" verbs like 話せる "can speak", the thing you can or can't do usually takes が instead of を.

💬 Adding か to the end turns a polite sentence into a question. No change in word order is needed.

💬 The small っ is a held beat, so it's (yukkuri), with a brief pause before the k.

💬 もう一度 means "one more time" and works in lots of situations. You can attach it to other requests too, like もう一度言ってください for "please say it again."

🇯🇵 Saying "toilet" is perfectly normal and polite in Japan. You'll also see お手洗い (otearai), a slightly more refined word for the same thing.

💬 Swap in any place before はどこですか: 駅はどこですか "Where is the station?"

💬 The small っ adds a held beat before the s: (massugu).

💬 これ is something near you. Use それ "that (near the listener)" or あれ "that over there" for things farther away.

🇯🇵 Pointing at a menu photo or display item and saying this is a perfectly normal way to order in Japan.

🇯🇵 Restaurants in Japan almost always bring free water or tea automatically, and it's usually self-serve at cheaper places.

💬 を marks the thing you're asking for and is said (o). Swap the noun freely: ビールをお願いします "Beer, please."

🇯🇵 Many places also have an English menu, which you can ask for with 英語のメニューはありますか "Do you have an English menu?"

🇯🇵 Said quietly to yourself, often with hands pressed together, right before the first bite, even when eating alone. It's also a polite nod to whoever cooked or paid, so it's worth saying when someone treats you.

🇯🇵 In small restaurants and ramen shops, people say this to the staff on the way out, and it's warmly received. It's also the natural thing to say to whoever paid for your meal.

💬 The ending い marks a describing word that works as a full sentence by itself, so おいしい！ alone means "It's delicious!" To be a bit more polite, add です: おいしいです.

💬 お願いします (onegai shimasu) is the all-purpose "please" for requests. Put the thing you want in front of it: 水お願いします "Water, please."

🇯🇵 In many restaurants you pay at the register by the door rather than at the table, often by bringing the bill there yourself. If you're unsure, staff will understand a small X made with your index fingers as asking for the check.

💬 Foreign loanwords are written in katakana and pronounced with extra vowels added: (kurejitto kādo). If you say "credit card" with a Japanese rhythm, you'll be understood.

💬 使えます is the "can be used" form of 使います "to use". The か at the end turns it into a question, like a spoken question mark.

💬 Here は is said (wa), not (ha). Swap in any payment method: Suicaは使えますか？ "Can I use Suica?"

🇯🇵 Cash is still common in Japan, especially at small restaurants, shrines and rural shops, so it's worth asking before you order. Many places accept transit IC cards like Suica even when they don't take credit cards.

💬 助けて (tasukete) is a casual command made from 助ける "to help". In a real emergency you don't add a polite ending; shouting the short form is exactly right.

💬 警察 is said (keisatsu). The ei sounds like a long "ay", as in "say".

🇯🇵 For minor problems like lost items or asking for directions, the neighborhood police box, 交番 (kōban), is usually the quickest help. The emergency number for police is 110.

💬 A verb's て form + ください makes a polite request. It works with other verbs too: 待ってください "Please wait."

💬 を marks the thing being acted on and is said (o), not (wo). Swap the noun to ask for something else: タクシーを呼んでください "Please call a taxi."

💬 救急車 is said (kyūkyūsha), with two long (ū) sounds. Saying them short can make the word hard to recognize.

🇯🇵 In Japan, ambulances are reached at 119, a different number from the police (110). The ambulance service is free.