ビールが飲みたい
bīru ga nomitai
The English phrase "I want a beer" can be expressed in Japanese as ビールが飲みたい (bīru ga nomitai).
While ビールが飲みたい expresses the desire to drink a beer, it is more natural to use the phrase ビール、お願いします (bīru, onegaishimasu) when actually ordering a beer in a restaurant. You can also use Bīru o kudasai. to say "Please give me a beer," or add "Sumimasen" at the beginning to say "Excuse me. Please give me a beer."
Which one should you use?
Biiru ga hoshii! can be used to say "I want a beer." To be even more informal, you can drop the particle "ga" to say Biiru hoshii! Additionally, Biru, onegaishimasu! can be used as a casual way to order a beer.
How does it change in a sentence?
In the phrase ビールが飲みたい, the particle が (ga) can be replaced with を (o) to say ビールを飲みたい without changing the core meaning.
How do you pronounce it?
bīru ga nomitai
Did you know?
- While ビール (bīru) sounds like 'beer', the Japanese word for 'building' is ビル (biru). The difference is a slight elongation of the vowel, which can change your order to a skyscraper.
- The word ビール (bīru) is a loanword from Dutch, not English. It is a remnant of the period when Dutch was the primary language used for international trade in Japan.
- To describe the feeling of wanting a beer after a long day, Japanese people use the phrase ビールが染みる (bīru ga shimiru), which literally means 'the beer is soaking in'.
Examples in context
- 仕事の後にビールが飲みたい。Shigoto no ato ni biiru ga nomitai.I want to drink a beer after work.
- 今はビールが飲みたい気分です。Ima wa biiru ga nomitai kibun desu.I am in the mood for a beer right now.
- 暑いから、ビールが飲みたい！Atsui kara, biiru ga nomitai!It's hot, so I want a beer!
Example conversation
Yota and Yui are walking home from work.
- 結衣 Yui陽太くん、喉乾いたね。Yōta-kun, nodo kawaita ne.Yota, you're thirsty, aren't you?
- 陽太 Yotaうん、すごくビールが飲みたい。un, sugoku bīru ga nomitai.Yeah, I really want a beer.
- 結衣 Yui私も！コンビニに寄ろうか。watashi mo! konbini ni yorō ka.Me too! Shall we stop by the convenience store?
- 陽太 Yota賛成。そうしよう。sansei. sō shiyō.Agreed. Let's do that.
