In Town

Flexible Phrases

These Japanese phrases can have a couple different variations and meanings, so let’s go over a few of them!

First off, よろしく (yoroshiku) can mean Nice to meet you!

よろしく!
Yoroshiku!
Nice to meet you!

It’s fairly casual though, so you can add おねがいします (onegaishimasu) to be more polite.

よろしくおねがいします。
Yoroshiku onegaishimasu.
Nice to meet you.

At its core, the phrase is often used when someone will do something for you. When you first meet a person, you’re asking for them to treat you well! Even just おねがいします (onegaishimasu) by itself is also often used when making a polite request!

おねがいします。
Onegaishimasu.
Please.

Apologies

If you need to apologize for something you did, use the phrase ごめんなさい (gomennasai).

ごめんなさい。
Gomennasai.
Sorry.

すみません (sumimasen) can be used to apologize as well, especially in formal situations. It also works to get someone’s attention, like excuse me in English.

すみません。
Sumimasen.
Excuse me.

You can also add どうも (dōmo), which adds emphasis, and say どうもすみません (dōmo sumimasen).

どうもすみません。
Dōmo sumimasen.
Please excuse me.

Thanks

There’s lots of ways to give thanks in Japanese! These are a couple more informal ones that you might use with friends and family.

どうも！
Dōmo!
Thanks!

ありがとう！
Arigatō!
Thank you!

どうもありがとう！
Dōmo arigatō!
Thank you very much!

In daily life, ありがとう is probably the most common of those three! But for strangers, teachers, or your boss, you can add ございます (gozaimasu) for some extra formality.

ありがとうございます！
Arigatō gozaimasu!
Thank you!