先生、こんにちは
sensei, konnichiwa
先生、こんにちは (sensei, konnichiwa) is the Japanese way to say "hello to teacher".
In Japanese, it is more natural to address a teacher by their title, sensei, rather than using a name or a pronoun like "you". Use this phrase to greet a teacher during the day. Depending on the time of day, other greetings are more appropriate: use おはようございます for the morning and こんばんは for the evening.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase consists of the title 先生 (teacher) followed by こんにちは (good day/hello).
How does it change in a sentence?
The word こんにちは is specifically a daytime greeting and is not used in the early morning or late at night.
How do you pronounce it?
sensei, konnichiwa
When do people say it?
When interacting with a teacher, certain phrases are used for specific social situations. For example, use しつれいします (excuse me) when entering or leaving your teacher's presence. While こんにちは is a standard daytime greeting, you should use おはようございます if you are greeting your teacher in the morning. Note that the honorific suffix -sensei is used specifically for a teacher, whereas -san is a more general honorific used for both males and females.
Did you know?
- The title 先生 is not only for school teachers but also for doctors, lawyers and authors. In Japan, anyone with a specialized mastery of a craft or profession is addressed as 先生.
- The word 先生 actually translates literally to 'one who was born before' or 'one who came before'.
- The word こんにちは originally began as part of a longer sentence meaning 'today is a good day'. The final 'wa' is actually a topic marker particle that indicates the speaker is about to say something more.
Examples in context
- 教室に入って、先生、こんにちはと言いました。Kyoushitsu ni haitte, sensei, konnichiwa to iimashita.I entered the classroom and said, "Hello, teacher."
- 廊下で先生、こんにちはと挨拶しました。Rouka de sensei, konnichiwa to aisatsu shimashita.I greeted the teacher in the hallway with "Hello, teacher."
Example conversation
Yota and Yui meet their teacher in the school hallway.
- 結衣 Yui先生、こんにちは。Sensei, konnichiwa.Hello, teacher.
- 陽太 Yotaこんにちは、結衣さん。Konnichiwa, Yui-san.Hello, Yui.
- 陽太 Yota先生、こんにちは！Sensei, konnichiwa!Hello, teacher!
- 結衣 Yuiこんにちは、陽太くん。Konnichiwa, Yota-kun.Hello, Yota.
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