How to Say ‘Please wait.’ in Japanese
少々お待ちください。
shoushou o machi kudasai
[shoh-shoh oh mah-chee koo-dah-sai]
💬 Usage Tip: [少々] means "a little / a moment" in a polite service style, and [お待ちください] is "please wait." You'll hear this exact phrase a lot from staff.
Phrase Breakdown
少々
shoushou
[shoh-shoh]
a little / a moment
A polite word meaning 'a little' or 'just a moment.'
少々時間があります。
I have a little time.
お
o
[oh]
honorific prefix
Polite prefix attached to 待ち in this set phrase.
お待ちしています。
I am waiting for you.
待ち
machi
[mah-chee]
waiting
From 待つ, this noun-like form refers to waiting.
待ち時間は長いです。
The waiting time is long.
ください
kudasai
[koo-dah-sai]
please
Used to politely ask someone to do something.
ここで待ってください。
Please wait here.
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