Question
I started a three-month assignment at our Tokyo office last week. People say something that sounds like “otsukaresama” all day — in the hallway, after meetings, when handing back a report — and everyone murmurs it back. I have no idea what it means or when I should be saying it myself. What does otsukaresama mean?
Answer by Professional Japanese Teacher
お疲（つか）れさまです。
Otsukaresama desu.
Thanks for your hard work. / Good job.
You’ll hear this one constantly in a Japanese office. It works as a general workplace greeting — when you pass someone in the hallway, when a meeting wraps up, and especially when a colleague is heading home. The feel is close to “thanks for everything today.” Use the desu form while work is still going, and switch to the past form when someone is actually leaving for the day:
お疲（つか）れさまでした。
Otsukaresama deshita.
Thanks for your hard work today.
One trap to watch for: gokurousama (ご苦労（くろう）さま) is what a boss says to staff, so saying it to your boss sounds disrespectful. Within your own company, stick with otsukaresama regardless of seniority — it works in any direction. When you’re the one leaving first, pair お先（さき）に失礼（しつれい）します (osaki ni shitsurei shimasu — “excuse me for leaving ahead of you”) with their reply of otsukaresama deshita.
