今日は
konnichi wa[kõ̞ɲ̟ːit͡ɕiβ̞a̠]
Hello in Japanese can be said as 今日は (konnichi wa). Wiktionary also lists 今晩は (konban wa).
Meaning: greeting (intj)
Ways to say it
| Japanese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| 今日は | konnichi wa | [kõ̞ɲ̟ːit͡ɕiβ̞a̠] (narrow) |
| 今晩は | konban wa | [kõ̞mbã̠ɰ̃β̞a̠] (narrow) |
For evening or night greetings, you should use 今晩は.
How do you pronounce it?
konnichi wa
Did you know?
- Unlike the English 'hello', which is used to answer the telephone, Japanese people use the word もしもし when picking up the phone. 今日は is almost never used for this purpose.
- In Japan, greetings like 今日は are traditionally accompanied by a bow. The depth and duration of the bow communicate the level of respect and the social hierarchy between the speakers.
- The greeting 今日は is actually a fragment of a longer sentence. It originally started as a way to comment on the weather or ask about someone's health before the rest of the sentence was dropped over time.
Examples in context
- 今日は。Hello!Tatoeba #778577 by marloncori, translation #373330 by CK
- おはようございます、山田さんGood morning, Mr./Ms. Yamada.
- こんにちは、田中さんHello, Mr./Ms. Tanaka.
- こんばんは、お元気ですか？Good evening, how are you?
- 失礼します、松本さんExcuse me, Mr./Ms. Matsumoto.
- おはよう、明美Good morning, Akemi.
Example conversation
Ren and Misaki meet on the street during the day.
- 蓮 Ren美咲さん、今日は！Misaki-san, konnichiwa!Hello, Misaki!
- 美咲 Misakiあ、蓮さん、こんにちは。A, Ren-san, konnichiwa.Oh, hello, Ren.
- 蓮 Renどこへ行くんですか？Doko e iku n desu ka?Where are you going?
- 美咲 Misaki駅へ行きます。Eki e ikimasu.I'm going to the station.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hello” translations and entries 今日は, 今晩は, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 今日は, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
