こんにちは
konnichiwaneutral
To a girl, say こんにちは (konnichiwa) when you do not know her well. If you are friends, a simple やあ (yā) or her name with おはよう (ohayō) in the morning is enough.
Meaning: greeting (phrase)
Ways to say it
| Japanese | Romanization | Note |
|---|---|---|
| こんにちは | konnichiwa | neutral |
| やあ | yā | casual |
| おはよう | ohayō | morning casual |
Japanese greetings do not change for the listener's gender. What changes is how close you are, so you add さん (san) after the name for politeness, or ちゃん (chan) for close girls.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
Polite morning and evening versions are おはようございます (ohayō gozaimasu) and こんばんは (konbanwa).
Did you know?
- こんにちは (konnichiwa) is written with the topic marker は (ha) but read "wa", because it comes from a longer old sentence meaning "as for today".
Examples in context
- こんにちは、はじめまして。Konnichiwa, hajimemashite.Hello, nice to meet you.
- おはよう、ミカちゃん。Ohayō, Mika-chan.Good morning, Mika.
Example conversation
Daichi meets Mika for the first time at a friend's party.
- Daichiこんにちは、ダイチです。Konnichiwa, Daichi desu.Hello, I am Daichi.
- Mikaこんにちは、ミカです。Konnichiwa, Mika desu.Hello, I am Mika.
- Daichiよろしくお願いします。Yoroshiku onegai shimasu.Nice to meet you.
