トイレに行く
toire ni iku
To go to the bathroom in Japanese is to say トイレに行く (toire ni iku).
This phrase is used when leaving a room or area to use the toilet. In many social situations, Japanese speakers may simply say トイレ to indicate they need to use the restroom.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase トイレに行く is composed of トイレ (toilet), に (to/towards) and 行く (to go).
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
There are several ways to express this depending on the level of politeness. The phrase お手洗いに行く is a more polite and indirect way to say 'go to the bathroom' than トイレに行く. For polite situations, you can use トイレに行きます or お手洗いに行きます. For informal situations, you can use トイレに行くよ or お手洗いに行くよ.
How does it change in a sentence?
To say 'I want to go to the bathroom,' you change the verb 行く to the desiderative form 行きたい and add the polite auxiliary です, resulting in トイレに行きたいです.
How do you pronounce it?
toire ni iku
Did you know?
- In Japan, you will often find 'toilet buttons' that play sounds of rushing water or birdsong to mask the noise of the user.
- In some formal contexts, especially when speaking to superiors, people avoid the topic of excretion entirely by using the more abstract 席を外す (seki o hazusu), which means 'to leave one's seat'.
- In very polite or high-class social settings, you might hear the expression 化粧室に行く (keshōshitsu ni iku), which literally means 'to go to the powder room' or 'make-up room'.
Examples in context
- お手洗いに行ってもいいですか？May I go to the bathroom?
- すみません、ちょっとトイレに行ってきますね。Excuse me, I'll go to the bathroom for a moment.
- お手洗いはどこですか？Where is the bathroom?
- トイレをお借りしてもいいですか？May I use the restroom, please?
- ちょっとトイレに行く。Chotto toire ni iku.I'm going to the bathroom for a moment.
- 今からトイレに行くね。Ima kara toire ni iku ne.I'm going to the bathroom now.
Example conversation
Kenta and Misaki are having coffee at a cafe.
- 健太 Kenta美咲、ちょっとトイレに行くね。Misaki, chotto toire ni iku ne.Misaki, I am going to the bathroom for a moment.
- 美咲 Misakiはい、いってらっしゃい。Hai, itterasshai.Okay, see you later.
- 健太 Kentaすぐ戻るよ。Sugu modoru yo.I'll be right back.
- 美咲 Misakiわかった。Wakatta.I understood.
