Which one should you use?
お疲れ様でした uses the past tense to mark the completion of a task or the end of the workday, whereas お疲れ様です (present tense) is used for ongoing work or during the day. Additionally, while ご苦労様でした also acknowledges hard work, it is used by a superior to a subordinate, while お疲れ様でした is used between colleagues or by a subordinate to a superior.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
You can use the shorter version お疲れ様 among friends, peers and coworkers or the even more casual お疲れ in very close relationships. Dropping the deshita or desu makes the phrase informal and suitable only for close colleagues or subordinates.
How does it change in a sentence?
The deshita ending is the polite past tense, which is used because the hard work being acknowledged is viewed as a completed action.
How do you pronounce it?
otsukaresama deshita
Did you know?
- The word tsukare within the phrase literally refers to the physical state of being tired or fatigued, meaning you are essentially acknowledging the person's exhaustion.
- In some traditional corporate environments, an employee might feel socially obligated to wait for their superior to say お疲れ様でした before they are permitted to leave the office.
- The honorific suffix sama used in otsukaresama is the same high-level respectful suffix used for deities and customers.
Examples in context
- 今日も一日お疲れ様でした。Kyou mo ichinichi otsukaresama deshita.Thank you for your hard work today.
- 皆様、本当にお疲れ様でした。Minasama, hontou ni otsukaresama deshita.Thank you all truly for your hard work.
- 先に失礼します。お疲れ様でした。Saki ni shitsurei shimasu. Otsukaresama deshita.I'm leaving now. Goodbye, thanks for your work.
Example conversation
Two colleagues are leaving the office at the end of the day.
- 結衣 Yui蓮さん、お疲れ様でした。Ren-san, otsukaresama deshita.Ren, thank you for your hard work.
- 蓮 Ren結衣さんも、お疲れ様でした。Yui-san mo, otsukaresama deshita.You too, Yui, thank you for your hard work.
- 結衣 Yuiまた明日お願いします。Mata ashita onegaishimasu.See you tomorrow.
- 蓮 Renはい、また明日。Hai, mata ashita.Yes, see you tomorrow.
