About This Lesson
Use Basic greetings and introductions to practice Japanese conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.
Dialogue
A
皆さん、おはようございます。
mee-nah-sahn, oh-hah-YOH goh-zah-ee-MAHS. Good morning, everyone.
B
お元気ですか。
oh-GEN-kee dess-kah? How are you?
A
元気です。
GEN-kee dess. I am fine.
B
はじめまして。
hah-jee-meh-MAH-shee-teh. Nice to meet you.
A
良い一日をお過ごしください。
yoh-ee ee-chee-nee-chee oh oh-SOO-goh-shee KOO-dah-sigh. Have a nice day.
B
どういたしまして。
doh-ee-tah-shee-mah-SHEE-teh. You are welcome.Word by Word
皆さん
皆さん means “everyone” in the greeting Good morning, everyone. It addresses a group of people together and is placed before or after a greeting when speaking to the whole group. Use it when addressing several people rather than one person.
おはようございます
おはようございます is the polite Japanese greeting used for “Good morning.” In this expression, おはよう is the morning greeting and ございます makes the greeting polite. Use it when greeting people in the morning, especially in a polite or group setting.
お元気
お元気 refers to someone being well or healthy in the polite question お元気ですか. The お gives the expression a polite form, while 元気 expresses well-being. Use お元気 when politely asking about another person’s condition.
です
です gives the statement 元気です a polite sentence ending, so the full line means “I am fine.” Here it politely states the condition expressed by 元気. It can follow a word or phrase to make a polite statement.
か
か marks the sentence お元気ですか as a question, giving it the meaning “How are you?” In this dialogue, it appears at the end of the question. Use か at the end of a sentence when forming a polite question.
元気
元気 means “fine” or “well” in the statement 元気です. It describes the speaker’s good condition in the reply “I am fine.” Use 元気 when talking about someone’s well-being or condition.
はじめまして
はじめまして is the conventional polite greeting meaning “Nice to meet you” when meeting someone for the first time. Within はじめまして, はじめ points to a beginning or first encounter, and まして completes the fixed polite expression. Use it at the start of an introduction to a new person.
良い
良い means “good” or “nice” and describes 一日 in 良い一日をお過ごしください. It appears before the noun it describes. Use 良い before a noun when expressing that something is good or desirable.
一日
一日 means “day” in 良い一日をお過ごしください. Together with 良い, it refers to the day being wished for. Use 一日 when referring to one day or the day as a period of time.
を
を is the Japanese particle placed after 一日 to mark it as the thing connected to お過ごしください. In the full expression, the meaning is “Please have a nice day,” rather than を meaning “day” by itself. Use を after the object of an action or request.
お過ごしください
お過ごしください means “please spend” or “please have” and functions as a polite well-wish in 良い一日をお過ごしください. お過ごし is the polite form used for spending time, and ください makes it a polite request. Use it after a time expression when wishing someone a pleasant period, as in 良い一日をお過ごしください.
どういたしまして
どういたしまして is the fixed polite response meaning “You are welcome.” In どういたしまして, どう introduces the expression’s “how” wording, いたし carries the polite “do” element, and まして completes the conventional response. Use it after someone thanks you.
Grammar Points
お〜ございます
おはようございます。
oh-hah-YOH goh-zah-ee-MAHS.Good morning.
お〜ございます is a polite fixed expression used in greetings. It is more formal than a simple greeting.
〜ください
良い一日をお過ごしください。
yoh-ee ee-chee-nee-chee oh oh-SOO-goh-shee KOO-dah-sigh.Please have a nice day.
〜ください politely asks someone to do something. を marks the thing the person will have or spend.
Japanese Vocabulary
おはようございます
intj
oh-hah-YOH goh-zah-ee-MAHS
good morning
皆さん、おはようございます。
お過ごしください
phrase
oh-SOO-goh-shee KOO-dah-sigh
please spend; have
良い一日をお過ごしください。
お元気ですか
phrase
oh-GEN-kee dess-kah
How are you?
お元気ですか。
どういたしまして
phrase
doh-ee-tah-shee-mah-SHEE-teh
You are welcome
どういたしまして。
はじめまして
phrase
hah-jee-meh-MAH-shee-teh
Nice to meet you
はじめまして。
一日
noun
ee-chee-nee-chee
day
良い一日をお過ごしください。
皆さん
pron
mee-nah-sahn
everyone
皆さん、おはようございます。
元気
adj
GEN-kee
fine; well
元気です。
良い
adj
yoh-ee
nice; good
良い一日をお過ごしください。
Quiz
Spelling
Tap the letters to spell the word.
How are you?
Show Answer
お元気ですかNice to meet you
Show Answer
はじめましてgood morning
Show Answer
おはようございますplease spend; have