ありがとう
arigatō[a̠ɾʲiɡa̠to̞ː]
To say thank you to a friend in Japanese, use ありがとう (arigatō).
ありがとう is the standard informal thank you for friends, family and people of equal or lower status.
Which one should you use?
どうも (Dōmo) is an even more casual thanks among friends. The English loanword サンキュー (sankyū) is sometimes used among very close friends in a playful way.
How does it change in a sentence?
Adding ne to make arigatōne makes the thanks sound friendlier.
How do you pronounce it?
It is read arigatō, with a long o at the end.
Did you know?
- The word ありがとう actually means 'it is difficult to exist'. It stems from the idea that something is so rare or precious that it is hard for it to occur.
- In Japanese culture, thanking someone too much can sometimes create a sense of burden. By saying 'thank you', you are acknowledging a debt that the other person may feel they need to repay.
- You can still use the root of the word to describe pleasant things, like weather, by saying they are 'arigatai'. This literally means the thing is 'hard to come by' or rare.
Examples in context
- プレゼント、ありがとう！Purezento, arigatou!Thank you for the present!
- 手伝ってくれて、ありがとう。Tetsudatte kurete, arigatou.Thank you for helping me.
- いつも本当にありがとう。Itsumo hontou ni arigatou.Thank you so much, always.
Example conversation
Yui gives Daigaku a snack at school.
- 大翔 Hirotoありがとう、結衣！arigatou, Yui!Thanks, Yui!
- 結衣 Yuiいいえ、気にしないで。iie, kinishinaide.No problem, don't mention it.
- 大翔 Hirotoちょうどお腹が空いていたんだ。choudo onaka ga suite itanda.I was just getting hungry.
- 結衣 Yuiよかった！yokatta!I'm glad!
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry ありがとう, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ありがとう, CC BY-SA 4.0.
