割り勘
warikan
The Japanese phrase for 'split the bill' is 割り勘 (warikan).
割り勘 refers to dividing the total cost of a meal or service equally among the people who shared it, rather than having one person pay for everyone.
How do you pronounce it?
warikan
Did you know?
- In Japanese business culture, it is common for the senior person or the company to pay for everyone. Suggesting 割り勘 to a superior can be seen as surprisingly blunt or impolite.
- In Japan, saying 割り勘 can sometimes be viewed as slightly blunt or stingy in certain social contexts. To sound more polite, people often prefer using the phrase 別々にお願いします (betsubetsu ni onegaishimasu), which means 'separately, please'.
- The word 割り勘 (warikan) literally translates to 'divided account' or 'divided calculation'. It is a contraction of the longer term 割り前勘定 (warimae kanjo).
Examples in context
- 割り勘にしよう。Let's split the bill.This sentence is useful for suggesting to split the bill using 割り勘.Tatoeba #12281317 by small_snow, translation #502357 by momomonkey
- 割り勘にしましょう。Let's split the bill fifty-fifty.This sentence is useful for a polite suggestion to split the bill fifty-fifty using 割り勘.Tatoeba #10040767 by small_snow, translation #7733133 by CK
- 今日は割り勘にしよう。Let's split the bill today.This sentence is useful for specifying that you will split the bill today using 割り勘.Tatoeba #171713 by tommy_san, translation #1230043 by CK
- 4 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends are finishing their lunch at a cafe.
- 大翔 Hirotoお会計、割り勘でいい？Okaikei, warikan de ii?Is it okay if we split the bill?
- 陽葵 Himariうん、割り勘にしよう。Un, warikan ni shiyou.Yeah, let's split the bill.
- 大翔 Hiroto一人いくらになるかな？Hitori ikura ni naru kana?I wonder how much it will be per person?
- 陽葵 Himariたぶん千円くらいだと思うよ。Tabun sen-en kurai da to omou yo.I think it will be around a thousand yen.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 割り勘, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
