Hajimemashite"How do you do?"
Hajimemashite is a greeting phrase meaning "How do you do?" or "Pleased to see you". This is used when you meet someone for the first time.
Doozo yoroshiku is a set phrase which can be translated to "Nice to meet you" or "I'm glad to meet you".
Doozo ohairi kudasai"Please come in"
Doozo means "Please". Ohairi kudasai is a set phrase meaning "(please) come in".
Shitsurei shimasu
This phrase is used when you enter someone's house or room, and in this situation, it means "Thank you".
This is also commonly used when you interrupt someone. In this situation, it means "Excuse me".
"Thank you" in Japanese, in general, is Arigatoo gozaimasu.
Watashi wa gakusei desu.
| a. | Watashi wa gakusei desu. |
| I am a student. |
This means "Noun A is noun B". Wa is a particle and a topic marker. The noun followed by a particle wa is the topic of a statement or a question. The topic also often refers to the subject, but not always.
Desu identifies someone or something. It can be translated into "is/are/am" in English. Desu is not affected by gender or number. The negative form of desu in the non-past tense and in the past tense are as follows, respectively: Ja arimasen and ja arimasendeshita are more formal.
| Affirmative | Negative | |
|---|---|---|
| Non-past tense (Present / Future) |
desu | janai desu ja arimasen |
| Past tense | deshita | janakatta desu ja arimasendeshita |
| b. | Lucy-san wa gakusei desu ka? |
| Are you a student? |
| c. | Hai. Watashi wa gakusei desu. |
| Yes, I am a student. |
Ka is a question marker. Ka added to the end of a sentence makes the sentence into a question. The word order does not change.
Hai means "yes" and Iie means "no". Ee is also commonly used for "yes" in casual situations.
-san, Lucy-san
-san is a honorific title like "Mr., Mrs., Miss or Ms.". This can be added to either a surname or a first name, of a male or a female. San shows respect to the person addressed, so it should not be used with one's own name and the names of one's own family members.
How to say "You"
"You" in Japanese is anata. In English, "you" is commonly used in any situation.
However, in Japanese, anata is sometimes used to refer to people of equal or lower status, thus in situations such as "disagreement", "criticism" or "dissatisfaction". In Japanese conversation, we usually address each other by using each other's names instead of using anata.