How to Say "Usually" in Japanese

たいてい

taitei[ta̠ite̞ː]

The English phrase "usually" can be translated into Japanese as たいてい (taitei). Wiktionary also lists 通常 (tsūjō).

Meaning: most of the time (adv)

Ways to say it

“usually” in Japanese
Japanese	Romanization (Wiktionary)	IPA
たいてい	taitei	[ta̠ite̞ː] (narrow)
通常	tsūjō	[t͡sɨːʑo̞ː] (narrow)

The words used for "usually" describe something that happens most of the time.

通常 (tsūjō) is a more formal, written-style word that translates to "usually" or "normally," whereas たいてい (taitei) is the conversational choice.

taitei

In casual speech, たいてい is sometimes replaced by だいたい (daitai), which technically means 'approximately' or 'mostly'.
Japanese has a distinct concept of 'usually' called 普段 (fudan), which refers specifically to one's habitual state or 'everyday' self rather than just a frequency of occurrence.
In Japanese, the word たいてい can be used as a noun meaning 'the majority' or 'most people', rather than just an adverb describing frequency.

私は通常8時に起きる。
I usually get up at eight.
This sentence shows the use of 通常 to describe a routine.
Tatoeba #477207 by e4zh1nmcz, translation #261503 by CK
たいてい外食なんです。
I usually eat out.
This sentence demonstrates how to use たいてい when talking about eating habits.
Tatoeba #11539715 by bunbuku, translation #252359 by CK
たいてい歩いて行きます。
I usually walk.
This sentence illustrates the use of たいてい regarding a mode of transport.
Tatoeba #203916 by arnab, translation #41158 by CK
私たちは通常、毎週の火曜日に会議を開きます。
Usually, we hold meetings every Tuesday.
私は普段、新聞を朝ご飯の前に読みます。
Usually, I read the newspaper before breakfast.
だいたい毎晩１０時に寝ています。
I usually go to bed around 10 o'clock every night.
大抵の学生は週末に友達と遊びます。
Usually, students hang out with friends on weekends.
51 more sentences on Tatoeba

Yui and Kenta are discussing their weekend habits.

結衣 Yui

週末はたいてい何をしていますか。
Shūmatsu wa taitei nani o shite imasu ka.
What do you usually do on weekends?
健太 Kenta

家でゆっくり本を読んでいます。
Ie de yukkuri hon o yonde imasu.
I usually relax and read books at home.
結衣 Yui

いいですね。私はたいてい買い物をします。
Ii desu ne. Watashi wa taitei kaimono o shimasu.
That's nice. I usually go shopping.
健太 Kenta

それは楽しそうですね。
Sore wa tanoshisō desu ne.
That sounds like fun.

Sources

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