Ways to say it
| Japanese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| ようこそ | yōkoso | [jo̞ːko̞so̞] (narrow) |
| いらっしゃいませ | irasshaimase | [iɾa̠ɕːa̠ima̠se̞] (narrow) |
| いらっしゃい | irasshai | [iɾa̠ɕːa̠i] (narrow) |
ようこそ is used for a general welcome, such as when welcoming someone to a specific place or a country. The related noun 歓迎 refers to the act of welcoming, while the verb 歓迎する is used to describe the act of welcoming someone or something rather than serving as a direct spoken greeting.
Which one should you use?
ようこそ is a general-purpose welcome used for locations like countries. いらっしゃいませ is the standard greeting used specifically by staff in shops or restaurants to welcome customers. いらっしゃい is a casual version of the welcome greeting used by a host welcoming a friend or a shopkeeper in a small, local establishment.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The verb 歓迎する is used to describe the act of welcoming someone or something, rather than being used as a direct spoken greeting.
How do you pronounce it?
yōkoso
Did you know?
- The greeting いらっしゃいませ actually contains a hidden command. It is built from a formal verb of movement and an imperative suffix, making it more like 'Please come in' than a simple 'Welcome'.
- The greeting いらっしゃいませ shares a similar logical structure to the Korean phrase 어서 오세요, which literally tells the guest to 'quickly come'.
- While いらっしゃいませ is used to welcome customers, it is not a question and does not require a spoken response from the customer.
Examples in context
- いらっしゃい。Welcome.This sentence shows a casual use of いらっしゃい.Tatoeba #416304 by bunbuku, translation #138919 by CM
- 日本へようこそ。Welcome to Japan.This sentence shows how to use ようこそ when welcoming someone to a country.Tatoeba #122387 by small_snow, translation #281616 by CN
- 地獄へようこそ。Welcome to hell!This sentence shows the use of ようこそ in a different context.Tatoeba #1723894 by tommy_san, translation #435946 by Clavain
- ようこそ、日本へお越しいただきありがとうございます。Welcome to Japan. Thank you for coming.
- 開会の挨拶を行い、皆さんを歓迎します。We will now give an opening speech and welcome all of you.
- いらっしゃい！どうぞお入りください。Welcome! Please come in.
- 32 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Misaki welcomes Hiroto to her hometown after his long flight.
- 美咲 Misaki大翔さん、私たちの町へようこそ！Hiroto-san, watashitachi no machi e yokoso!Hiroto, welcome to our town!
- 大翔 Hirotoありがとう、美咲さん。やっと着いたよ。Arigatou, Misaki-san. Yatto tsuita yo.Thank you, Misaki. I finally arrived.
- 美咲 Misaki準備はできているから、ゆっくりしてね。Junbi wa dekite iru kara, yukkuri shite ne.Everything is ready, so please relax.
- 大翔 Hiroto助かるよ。本当に楽しみだ。Tasukaru yo. Hontou ni tanoshimi da.That helps. I'm really looking forward to it.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “welcome” translations and entries ようこそ, いらっしゃいませ, いらっしゃい, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries いらっしゃい, いらっしゃいませ, ようこそ, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
