Answer by Japanese teacher Explanation In the first expression, the word 話(はな)せます hanasemasu comes from “話(はな)す hanasu” (to speak). In the second expression, わかります wakarimasu means “to understand”. Both expressions can be used to mean “do you speak English”. It […]

Answer by Japanese teacher Explanation When you are calling out to a waiter in a restaurant to mean “excuse me”, you can use sumimasen. Sumimasen also means “sorry” and “thank you” (when you have troubled someone for his help). In […]

Answer by Japanese teacher Explanation Konnichiwa is often used as a greeting to mean “good afternoon”. It was actually once part of a greeting sentence (today is…) but has evolved to its shortened form now to simply say hello. Ogenki […]

Answer by Japanese teacher Explanation The word dooitashimashite means you’re welcome. This is a formal expression. You can say it with or without iie in front. iie literally means “no” but in this case, it means “no, it’s nothing”. If […]

Answer by Japanese teacher Explanation OK is also used in Japanese so you can say OK desu. Alternatively, you can use daijoobu desu. The word 大丈夫(だいじょうぶ) daijoobu literally means “fine, alright”. So this phrase means you’re fine with whatever was […]

Answer by Japanese teacher Explanation The most literal way of saying “no” is iie. However, it really depends on the situation. There are many ways of saying “no” in Japanese but it would take too long to list them all […]

Answer by Japanese teacher Explanation There are two ways of saying “please” in Japanese, onegaishimasu and kudasai. Both expressions are used at the end of the sentence, after you say the request. In (1), the word 願(ねが)い negai means “a […]