よかった
yokatta
The Japanese phrase for "thank God" is よかった (yokatta).
よかった is used to express relief when a worrying situation has been resolved or a positive outcome is achieved.
Meaning: exclamation of gratitude or relief (intj)
Which one should you use?
While よかった can mean "it was good" in a descriptive sense, when used as an exclamation, it functions as "thank God" or "I'm glad" to express relief.
How do you pronounce it?
yokatta
Did you know?
- If you want to specifically thank a god, you would use 神様に感謝します, but saying this in a casual situation where よかった is used would sound unnaturally religious to most Japanese people.
- The phrase よかった is the past tense of いい ('good'). Using the past tense expresses that the danger has already passed, even if the relief is felt in the present moment.
- The phrase is often accompanied by a physical sigh or a hand over the heart to emphasize the sense of relief.
Examples in context
- あ、テストが終わってよかった。A, tesuto ga owatte yokatta.Ah, thank god the test is over.
- 雨が降らなくてよかった。Ame ga furanakute yokatta.Thank god it didn't rain.
- 無事に見つかってよかった。Buji ni mitsukatte yokatta.Thank god it was found safely.
Example conversation
Yui and Yota are relieved after Yota found his lost wallet.
- 結衣 Yui財布、見つかった？Saifu, mitsukatta?Did you find your wallet?
- 陽太 Yotaうん、カバンの底にあったよ。Un, kaban no soko ni atta yo.Yeah, it was at the bottom of my bag.
- 結衣 Yui本当によかった。Honto ni yokatta.Thank god, truly.
- 陽太 Yota本当に、安心したよ。Honto ni, anshin shita yo.Really, I'm so relieved.
