How to Say ‘Good morning’ in Japanese
おはようございます
ohayou gozai masu
[oh-hah-yoh goh-zah-ee mahs]
🇯🇵 In Japan: おはようございます is polite and standard in the morning, including with staff, coworkers, or people you don't know well. The shorter おはよう is for casual situations.
Phrase Breakdown
おはよう
ohayou
[oh-hah-yoh]
good morning
A common morning greeting in Japanese.
先生、おはようございます。
Good morning, teacher.
ございます
gozai masu
(polite ending)
This polite ending turns a greeting into a formal one. Say go-za-i-mas, and keep the final 'u' very light, almost silent.
ありがとうございます。
Thank you very much.
Words in this phrase
ござい
gozai
[goh-zah-ee]
to be; to exist (polite part of expression)
A polite verb stem used in set phrases like greetings to sound respectful.
あいさつでは、ございをていねいに言います。
In greetings, you say gozai politely.
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.
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