こんにちは
konnichiwa
The Japanese phrase for "hello sir" is こんにちは (konnichiwa).
こんにちは is a polite greeting used to say hello to a man.
How do you pronounce it?
konnichiwa
Did you know?
- In a business setting, Japanese speakers often skip こんにちは and instead use お疲れ様です, which acknowledges the other person's hard work.
- While こんにちは is often translated as 'hello', it is actually a fragment of a longer sentence that used to mean 'Regarding today…'.
- Unlike in English, where 'hello' can be used to start a phone call, Japanese people almost never use こんにちは on the phone, using もしもし instead.
Examples in context
- こんにちは、店長。Konnichiwa, tenchou.Hello, sir (manager).
- こんにちは、お客様。Konnichiwa, okyaku-sama.Hello, sir (customer).
Example conversation
Yui greets Yota at a store.
- 結衣 Yuiこんにちは、陽太さん。Konnichiwa, Yota-san.Hello, Yota.
- 陽太 Yotaこんにちは、結衣さん。Konnichiwa, Yui-san.Hello, Yui.
- 結衣 Yuiいい天気ですね。Ii tenki desu ne.The weather is nice, isn't it?
- 陽太 Yotaそうですね。Sou desu ne.It really is.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry こんにちは, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
