Saying “please” in Japanese isn’t about using one single word. Instead, it’s about using the right phrase for the right situation, whether you are asking for a favor, requesting a physical object, or inviting someone to do an action.
This flexibility is essential for sounding natural and respectful. This guide will break down the most common ways to express “please” in Japanese.
Table of Contents
The General Way: Asking for a Favour
When you are asking for a general favour or need someone’s assistance, the most common phrase is one we’ve already learned with “nice to meet you” in Japanese.
Formal and Polite Requests
The most common and general way to say “please” when asking for a favour is:
- お願いします (Onegaishimasu).
This phrase literally means “I humbly request” and is the general way to ask for a favour. Use this when you need someone to perform a service or help you.
Click here to hear how to pronounce お願いします.
Casual Contexts
When speaking to younger siblings, friends, or in a very casual setting, you can simply drop the polite ending します (shimasu): お願い (onegai).
Requesting an Object: “Please Give Me…”
When you want to request a specific physical object, like a glass of water or a bowl of rice, the structure changes entirely.
The Request Structure
You structure the request by naming the object, followed by the particle を (o), and then 下さい (kuadasai).
- [Object] + を (o) + ください (kudasai)
The word ください (kudasai) is the formal way to say “Please give me…”
Click here to hear how to pronounce ください.
Example: To politely ask for water, you would say: お水 を 下さい (Omizu o kudasai).
Note: When Japanese speak, they’ll sometimes omit the particule when it’s obvious. So you might also just hear お水 下さい (Omizu kudasai).
Using the Honorific Prefix for Drinks and Food
Notice the お (o) before 水 (mizu). This is an honorific prefix used to show respect toward certain things in Japanese culture. It’s especially common for drinks and food. An other example would be お茶 (ocha) meaning ‘tea.’
The honorific 御 is also sometimes read ご (go). For instance, to ask for rice (or a bowl of rice), you might hear: ご飯 を ください (Gohan o kudasai).
The Familiar Request Alternative
In a casual context, when talking to siblings or friends, you would replace ください (kudasai) with a different phrasing. And since this is an informal request, you’re more likely to skip the object particle を (o):
- [Object] + ちょうだい (chōdai)
Example: To casually ask “give me this”, you would say: これ ちょうだい (kore choudai).
Click here to hear how to pronounce ちょうだい.
Inviting an Action: “Please Do…”
If you are inviting someone to take an action, such as sitting down or coming in, you use a different “please” we also saw in how to say “nice to meet you” in Japanese:
- どうぞ (Dōzo)
For instance, if you want to say “please sit down,” you’ll say どうぞ お座り ください (Dōzo osuwari kudasai). Here, we notice three things. Used どうぞ (dōzo) and ください (kudasai) in addition to the honorific suffix お (o) which all give away the fact that it’s a polite sentence.
You’ll also here the sentence こちら へ どうぞ (kochira e dōzo) when entering a restaurant. It means “this way, please.”
Click here to hear how to pronounce どうぞ.
Final Thoughts: Choosing the Right “Please”
Remember that Japanese doesn’t rely on one single word for “please.” To speak naturally, you must choose the right expression for the right context:
- Use お願いします (Onegaishimasu) for general favours and requests.
- Use ください (kudasai) when requesting a specific object.
- Use どうぞ (Dōzo) when inviting someone to perform an action.
Mastering these different structures is the key to polite and fluent communication in Japanese!
Ready for the next lesson?
Let’s study how to say thank you in Japanese!