How to Say ‘Where is the restroom?’ in Japanese
お手洗いはどこですか。
o tearai wa doko desu ka
[o teh-ah-RYE wah doko dess kah]
💬 Usage Tip: Swap in any place before はどこですか (wa doko desu ka) to ask where it is: 出口はどこですか "where is the exit?". Here は is said (wa).
Phrase Breakdown
お手洗いは
o tearai wa
the restroom (topic)
お手洗い is a polite word for toilet. は (topic marker) is pronounced 'wa'.
お手洗いは二階です。
The restroom is on the second floor.
Words in this phrase
お
o
[o]
polite prefix
Prefix added for politeness.
お名前は？
What is your name?
手洗い
tearai
[teh-ah-RYE]
restroom
Polite word for toilet, literally 'hand washing'.
お手洗いはどこですか。
Where is the restroom?
は
wa
[wah]
topic marker
は marks the topic of the sentence.
空席はありますか。
Are there any seats available?
どこですか。
doko desu ka
where is it?
どこ (where) + ですか (polite question). The final 'u' in 'desu' is nearly silent.
駅はどこですか。
Where is the station?
Words in this phrase
どこ
doko
[doko]
where
A question word asking about a place or location.
どこに行きますか？
Where are you going?
です
desu
[dess]
is; polite copula
A polite sentence ending used in formal conversation.
少し伺いたいです。
I would like to ask a little.
か
ka
[kah]
question marker
Placed at the end of a sentence to make it a question.
A席はありますか。
Are there A seats available?
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