テイクアウト
teikuauto[te̞ikɯ̟a̠ɯ̟to̞]
In Japanese, takeaway food is referred to as テイクアウト (teikuauto).
The term refers to food prepared by a restaurant that is purchased to be eaten elsewhere. In modern Japanese, the katakana loanword テイクアウト is the most common way to refer to this concept.
How does it change in a sentence?
To turn the phrase into a modifier meaning 'for the purpose of takeout,' such as when seen on packaging or menus, you can add 用 to the end to form テイクアウト用. If you want to ask a restaurant if they offer takeaway, you can add the verb できますか to the end of the phrase to say テイクアウトできますか？ (Can I do takeout?).
How do you pronounce it?
teikuauto
Did you know?
- The term テイクアウト is an example of 'Wasei-eigo', or English words coined in Japan, which can sometimes differ in usage from how 'takeout' is used in the US or UK.
- While テイクアウト is used for restaurant food, Japanese has a distinct word お持ち帰り (omochikaeri) that adds a polite prefix お to signal respect toward the customer.
- While テイクアウト is used, you will more frequently encounter the native Japanese term 持ち帰り. This term is composed of two kanji that literally translate to 'carrying' and 'returning'.
Examples in context
- これを入れないでくださいPlease don't include this
- テイクアウトはできますか？Teikuouto wa dekimasu ka?Is takeaway available?
- テイクアウトのメニューを見せてください。Teikuouto no menyuu o misete kudasai.Please show me the takeaway menu.
- 今日はテイクアウトにしましょう。Kyou wa teikuouto ni shimashou.Let's do takeaway today.
Example conversation
Kenta and Yui are deciding what to eat for dinner at home.
- 健太 Kenta晩ご飯、テイクアウトにする？Bangohan, teikuouto ni suru?Shall we have takeaway for dinner?
- 結衣 Yuiいいよ、何がいいかな？Ii yo, nani ga ii kana?Sure, what should we get?
- 健太 Kenta近くのイタリアンはどう？Chikaku no itarian wa dou?How about the Italian place nearby?
- 結衣 Yui賛成！ピザを頼もう。Sansei! Piza o tanomou.Agreed! Let's order pizza.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry テイクアウト, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
