お母さん、こんにちは
okāsan, konnichiwa
The phrase お母さん、こんにちは (okāsan, konnichiwa) is how you say "hi, mother" in Japanese.
This phrase is a casual greeting used to say hello to one's mother.
Which one should you use?
While お母さん (okāsan) is the standard way to address your own mother directly, you would use the word haha instead when talking about your mother to someone else.
How do you pronounce it?
okāsan, konnichiwa
Did you know?
- The word こんにちは is derived from a longer phrase that originally meant 'today is a good day', acting as a conversation starter rather than a simple greeting.
- The structure of the word お母さん is so common that it is frequently used to address any middle-aged woman in a polite, social context, even if she is not your mother.
- In very casual settings, some children shorten お母さん to ママ (mama), a loanword from English that is used almost exclusively in the home.
Examples in context
- お母さん、こんにちは。Hello, Mother.
- 母、おはようございます。Good morning, Mother.
Example conversation
Yota comes home from school and sees his mother in the kitchen.
- 陽太 Yotaお母さん、こんにちは。Okāsan, konnichiwa.Hi, mother.
- 結衣 Yuiおかえり、陽太。Okaeri, Yōta.Welcome home, Yota.
- 陽太 Yotaお腹が空いたよ。Onaka ga suita yo.I'm hungry.
- 結衣 Yuiすぐにご飯にするね。Sugu ni gohan ni suru ne.I'll have dinner ready soon.
