Topic hub
Essential Japanese Phrases
The phrases you actually need in your first week of using Japanese.
- Inku phrase packs
- 4 (casual, polite, travel, anime)
- Phrases to live in Japan (survival)
- ~40
Why phrases, not just vocabulary
Vocabulary lets you name things. Phrases let you do things. There's a huge gap between knowing the word 'thank you' and knowing when, how politely, and in what form to say it.
Japanese has at least six ways to say thank you, each appropriate to a different context. Learning phrase-first teaches you to pattern-match to situations, which is how natives actually speak.
Core phrase categories
Greetings and goodbyes. Self-introduction and basic biographical questions. Restaurant ordering. Directions and getting around. Shopping. Apologies and thanks. Dealing with misunderstandings.
You can get through a week in Japan on about 40 phrases, plus vocabulary you already know.
Related reading
Common questions
Should I learn phrases before or after vocabulary?+
In parallel. Phrases give you usable output; vocabulary gives you scaffolding to build new phrases on.
Is polite or casual more useful for beginners?+
Polite (-desu/-masu). It's safe in nearly every real context, including speaking to strangers, coworkers, and anyone older than you.