The notion of group is important in Japanese culture.
We distinguish between people who are inside our own group (family, friends, our team) and people outside the group.
Depending on the group in which the person is, specific names and suffixes are used.
How to say "I"
|
Sex
|
Designation
|
Note
|
|---|---|---|
|
M / F
|
私
|
The most common, quite polite. |
|
M / F
|
私
|
Used in formal speeches.
|
|
F
|
あたし
|
Mainly used by women or girls.
|
|
M
|
僕
|
Mainly used by men or boys.
|
|
M
|
俺
|
Mainly used by men in private (familiar).
|
|
M
|
俺様
|
Even prouder expression of "おれ". Not really used in real life but you see it a lot in manga. |
|
M
|
わし
|
Mainly used by very old men.
|
How to say "You"
|
Designation
|
Note
|
|---|---|
|
Nom + さん
|
Polite suffix, most frequently used. Used with colleagues, friends or acquaintances. Used to refer to the person you are talking to or when talking about a 3rd person. |
|
Nom + ちゃん
|
Cute suffix for little girls. Used to refer to the person you are talking to or when talking about a 3rd person. |
|
Nom + くん
|
Suffix to designate boys of varying ages. Used to refer to the person you are talking to or when talking about a 3rd person. |
|
Nom + さま
|
More respectful suffix than さん. Used for customers, in professional written communications. Used to refer to the person you are talking to or when talking about a 3rd person. |
|
あなた
|
Used to address strangers you meet or in questionnaires. Not used to address higher level people. |
|
あんた
|
Attention, the meaning differs according to the region:
- In the Kansai region, used in a friendly relationship - In Kanto region, used in a pejorative way against the interlocutor |
|
君
|
Slightly lowers the interlocutor. Often used between men/boys. |
|
お前
お前
|
Slightly lowers the interlocutor. Familiar. An even ruder version is おめえ which clearly expresses hostility. |
|
手前
|
Puts down the speaker and expresses strong hostility. Used before a fight for example.
|
|
貴様
|
Belittles the interlocutor and expresses strong hostility like てめえ. Originally, it was a respectful word, however, time has reversed the meaning. Rarely used in life but often seen in manga.
|
|
お前 |
99998485502781 |
|
君 |
99998481112705 |
|
様 |
99998484944884 |
鈴木さんは元気です。
Mr. or Mrs. Suzuki is fine (polite)
鈴木 様はお元気です。
Mr. or Mrs. Suzuki is fine (respectful)
あなたは元気ですか。
Are you okay? (Said by a higher ranking person)
あんた元気か。
How are you doing? (friendly: Kansai)
あんたのせいだよ！
It's because of you! (angry: Kanto)
君は帰りなさい。
You must go home! (The superior gives an order)
お前が悪い。
It's your fault! (the father scolds his son)
恵子ちゃんは 元気ですか。
Is Keiko okay?
健くんは 元気ですか。
Is Ken okay?
| くん | 1644710169 |
| さま | 18762082 |
| ちゃん | 99998476221184 |
In Japanese, it is common to refer to people by their title or position.
先生 (name of a teacher or professor, doctor, artist, lawyer, master)
社長 (director or president of a company)
部長 (director or president of a company)
or by the relationship between the two speakers:
父 (father or dad)
姉 (big sister)
妹 (little sister)
先生、おはようございます。
Hello, Professor.
経理部長は、いらっしゃいますか。
Is the director of the accounting department here?
| 先生 | 99998485641606 |
| 社長 | 1320335298 |
| 姉 | 2110278007 |
How to say "He" and "She"
He : 彼
He : 彼
She : 彼女
彼 and 彼女 also mean "boyfriend" and "girlfriend" respectively.
To check which case it is, it is necessary to ask if it is a lover 恋人.
To check which case it is, it is necessary to ask if it is a lover 恋人.
How to talk about family members
|
Family member
|
When we talk about
our own family |
When we talk about
someone else's family |
|---|---|---|
|
Grandma
|
祖母
|
お 祖母さん
|
|
Grandpa
|
祖父
|
お 祖父さん
|
|
Aunt
|
おば |
おば さん
|
|
Uncle
|
おじ |
おじ さん
|
|
Parents
|
両親
|
ご 両親
|
|
Mother
|
母
|
お 母さん
|
|
Father
|
父さん
|
お 父さん
|
|
Wife
|
妻
|
奥さん
|
| Husband |
夫 / 旦那
|
ご 主人 / 旦那 さん
|
|
Big sister
|
姉
|
お 姉さん
|
|
Big brother
|
兄
|
お 兄さん
|
|
Little sister
|
妹
|
妹さん
|
|
Little brother
|
弟
|
弟さん
|
| Son |
息子
|
息子さん
|
|
Daughter
|
娘
|
娘さん
|
Leave Comment