さん
san
The Japanese equivalent of the English "mr." is さん (san).
さん is a gender-neutral honorific used to show respect. In Japanese, you create a polite form of address by attaching さん to a person's last name.
Meaning: abbreviation of mister (noun)
Which one should you use?
While さん is the standard way to address others as Mr., Ms., Mrs., or Miss, a more formal version, 様 (sama), is used for customers, deities or individuals of much higher status.
How does it change in a sentence?
The term functions as a general honorific that can be used for both men and women, covering the English equivalents of mr., ms., mrs., and miss.
How do you pronounce it?
san
What mistakes should you avoid?
Do not use さん with your own name. English speakers often make the mistake of attaching this suffix to themselves, but doing so sounds extremely self-important or strange in Japanese.
Did you know?
- The honorific さん is sometimes attached to non-human things, such as お月さん (Otsuki-san) for the moon, to give them a friendly or personified quality.
- There is a specific honorific, 殿 (dono), which is an archaic version of 'Mr.' often seen in historical samurai films or on formal certificates, but it is almost never used in modern conversation.
- In certain contexts, さん can be used as a counter for people, meaning 'person' rather than acting as an honorific suffix.
Examples in context
- 田中さんMr. Tanaka
- 鈴木さんMr. Suzuki
- 山田さんMr. Yamada
- 佐藤さんは親切です。Satō-san wa shinsetsu desu.Mr. Sato is kind.
- 田中さんは学生ですか？Tanaka-san wa gakusei desu ka?Is Mr. Tanaka a student?
Example conversation
Two colleagues are talking about a coworker in the office.
- 美咲 Misaki蓮さんは、佐藤さんを知っていますか？Ren-san wa, Satō-san o shitte imasu ka?Ren, do you know Mr. Sato?
- 蓮 Renはい、佐藤さんは私の上司です。Hai, Satō-san wa watashi no jōshi desu.Yes, Mr. Sato is my boss.
- 美咲 Misakiそうですか。彼はとても厳しいですか？Sō desu ka. Kare wa totemo kibishii desu ka?I see. Is he very strict?
- 蓮 Renいいえ、佐藤さんはとても優しいですよ。Iie, Satō-san wa totemo yasashii desu yo.No, Mr. Sato is very kind.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “mr.” translations and entries さん, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
