Japanese greetings for every time of day

Greetings are the first Japanese most people learn, and the first they get slightly wrong. Japanese has different hellos for different times of day, and some everyday moments, like leaving the house or starting a meal, have set phrases that English doesn't.

Hello, through the day

おはようございます is used until about mid-morning. With family and close friends, shorten it to おはよう (ohayō). At many workplaces people say it when they first arrive, even in the afternoon or evening.

こんにちは covers the daytime. It's a little formal for people you see every day; you'd rarely say it to your own family.

こんばんは is for the evening, once it's dark.

おやすみなさい isn't a greeting when you meet someone; it's what you say when someone is going to bed. Friends often shorten it to おやすみ.

Goodbye

さようなら is in every textbook, but it sounds quite final, like you won't see each other for a while. Teachers and pupils use it at the end of the school day, but among friends it's rare.

Friends say またね or じゃあね instead. In polite situations, like leaving an office or a shop, people say しつれいします ("excuse me for leaving").

Thanks and sorry

すみません is the everyday "excuse me" and "sorry" with strangers. ごめんなさい is a more personal apology, used with friends and family.

Set phrases for everyday moments

These have no exact English equivalent, and you'll hear them all the time:

いってきます and いってらっしゃい are a pair: the person leaving says the first, and whoever stays says the second. ただいま and おかえりなさい are the same when someone comes home.

おつかれさまです ("you must be tired") is the classic workplace phrase: used as a greeting in the corridor, at the end of a meeting, or as people leave work for the day.

Bowing with your greeting

In Japan, greetings usually come with a bow. A quick nod of the head is fine for everyday hellos; a deeper bow shows more respect. As a visitor, a small, sincere nod with your greeting is always welcome.