放っておいてください
hotte oite kudasai
The phrase "please leave me alone" in Japanese is 放っておいてください (hotte oite kudasai).
This phrase is used to request that someone stop bothering you or stop interfering in your business.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
The phrase 放っておいてください is the polite version, making it suitable for use with strangers or in formal settings. You can say 放っておいて to be informal, though dropping the kudasai can sound blunt or even angry depending on your tone. For a much more aggressive or rough sound, you can use ほっといてくれ, which utilizes the contraction hottoite and the imperative-style kure.
How do you pronounce it?
hotte oite kudasai
Did you know?
- The verb 放つ (hanatsu), which forms the root of the phrase, literally means 'to release' or 'to set free', much like releasing a bird from a cage.
- While 放っておいてください is polite, saying it to a superior in a Japanese company can still be perceived as an act of rebellion or extreme distress because it explicitly rejects the superior's guidance.
- The phrase 放っておく is often used to describe neglecting a pet or a plant. In these cases, it means 'to leave alone' in a negative sense, such as failing to provide necessary care.
Examples in context
- 怒っているので、放っておいてください。Okotte iru node, hottoite kudasai.I am angry, so please leave me alone.
Example conversation
Misaki is upset and Ren is trying to ask her what is wrong.
- 蓮 Renどうしたの？何かあった？doushita no? nanika atta?What's wrong? Did something happen?
- 美咲 Misaki今は放っておいてください。ima wa hanatte oite kudasai.Please leave me alone right now.
- 蓮 Renでも、心配だよ。demo, shinpai dayo.But I'm worried.
- 美咲 Misakiお願いだから、放っておいてください。onegai dakara, hanatte oite kudasai.I'm asking you, please leave me alone.
