とても似合っているよ
totemo niatte iru yo
In Japanese, "you look great" is expressed as とても似合っているよ (totemo niatte iru yo).
This phrase is a compliment used to tell someone that a particular piece of clothing or a style suits them well. Unlike in English, where you might say "You look great", in Japanese you are essentially saying "This [item] suits you" by using the verb niau.
Which one should you use?
In casual conversation, the word totemo is often replaced with sugoku and the i in niatte iru is often dropped to become niatteru, as seen in すごく似合ってるよ！
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
ステキだよ！ and かっこいいね！ are informal, while お美しいですね。 and ご機嫌ですね。 are formal expressions used to say "You look beautiful" and "You look cheerful" respectively.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase niatte iru is the continuous form of the verb niau. It is used to describe the state of someone looking good in something they are currently wearing.
How do you pronounce it?
totemo niatte iru yo
Did you know?
- When receiving a compliment like 似合っている, Japanese people often respond by modestly denying it with いいえ or そんなことないです rather than saying 'thank you'.
- While かっこいい can mean 'cool' or 'great', it is increasingly used for women and gender-neutral styles, moving beyond its original meaning of 'masculine beauty'.
- In very formal settings, instead of praising the person, it is more common to praise the item itself, such as saying the color is 'lovely'.
Examples in context
- お綺麗ですね、先生。You look lovely, teacher.
- 今日の髪型すごく似合ってるね！Your hairstyle today looks great on you!
- お仕事中でもお綺麗ですね。You look beautiful even while working.
- その色のシャツ、とても似合っているよ。Sono iro no shatsu, totemo niatte iru yo.That colored shirt suits you very well.
- 新しい髪型、とても似合っているよ。Atarashii kamigata, totemo niatte iru yo.Your new hairstyle looks great on you.
- その帽子、とても似合っているよ。Sono boushi, totemo niatte iru yo.That hat suits you very well.
Example conversation
Yui and Hiroto are meeting at a cafe.
- 結衣 Yui大翔、今日のジャケット、とても似合っているよ。Hiroto, kyou no jaketto, totemo niatte iru yo.Hiroto, that jacket looks great on you today.
- 大翔 Hiroto本当？ありがとう、嬉しいよ。Hontou? Arigatou, ureshii yo.Really? Thanks, I'm happy to hear that.
- 結衣 Yuiすごくかっこいいよ。Sugoku kakkoii yo.You look really cool.
- 大翔 Hiroto結衣に褒められると照れるな。Yui ni homerareru to tereru na.I'm blushing being complimented by you, Yui.
