Learn Japan in 30-second reels
Real phrases for the konbini, the restaurant, the train — each with romaji and English, ready to use the second you land.
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The Tax-Free Counter Is Not at the Shop. It Is Before Bag Drop.
kakunin onegai shimasu. · Confirmation, please.
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Open That KitKat in Japan and the 10 Percent Is Not Coming Back.
mada akemasen. · I'm not opening it yet.
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The Gate Spat You Back. Your Card Is Not Broken. It Is Empty.
chāji o onegai shimasu · I'd like to add money, please.
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There Is a Raw Egg on Your Beef Bowl. That Is Not a Garnish. Crack It.
namatamago desu · It's a raw egg.
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In Japan, Your WhatsApp Number Is Useless. Everyone Asks for LINE.
LINE de ii desu ka? · Is LINE okay?
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Your Suitcase Is in the Aisle. Six People Just Stepped Over It. That Shelf Is Empty on Purpose.
amidana ni agete kudasai · Please put it on the overhead rack.
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They Handed You a Rubber Key. Walk Out Without It and Your Shoes Stay in Japan.
getabako · shoe box (the numbered cabinet)
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You Stripped for the Onsen. Your Wallet Is Sitting in an Open Basket.
kichōhin rokkā · valuables locker
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You Sat Down to Rest. They Will Not Leave Until You Order a Drink.
wan dorinku sei desu · there is a one-drink minimum
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They Handed You a Coaster. Two Minutes Later It Screamed
nattara o-hairi kudasai · when it rings, please come in
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She Kept Your Bread and Handed You a Paddle With 17 on It
bangō-fuda · number tag
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Two Lines. You Joined the One That Never Sits Down
tennai desu · dine-in / eating here
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You Booked the Quiet Week in September. Japan Invented a Five-Day Weekend
renkyū · consecutive holidays / a long weekend
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Three Lines Get You Through Any Restaurant in Japan
Sumimasen, futari desu. Ohiya o onegaishimasu. Okaikei o onegaishimasu. · Excuse me, table for two. Water, please. The check, please.
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All You Can Drink in Japan Starts a Clock You Cannot See.
nomihōdai de onegai shimasu · All-you-can-drink, please.
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The Autumn Leaves Ignore Your Cherry-Blossom Maps. They Fall the Other Way.
kōyō zensen · the autumn-leaves front (the wave of foliage moving south)
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You Waited Twenty Minutes. The Waiter Was a Sticker on the Table.
yomitotte kudasai · Please scan it
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Your App Taught You This Means Yes. The Cashier Just Heard No.
ii desu · I'm good / no thanks
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Your Pocket Wi-Fi Just Died and Your Hotel Code Was Inside It
kowaremashita · it broke / it's not working
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You Joined the Fast Lane in a Japanese Supermarket. It Does Not Have a Cashier.
serufu reji de onegai shimasu · Please use the self-checkout.
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Your App Taught You Kekkou. At the Airport That Sound Means Your Plane Is Dead.
kekkō ni narimashita · The flight has been cancelled.
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Your Suitcase Just Jammed in a Tokyo Ticket Gate. There Was One Gate You Should Have Used.
koko, tōremasu ka? · Can I get through here?
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The Steaming Tub Is Back Beside the Konbini Register. Then Comes the Question.
karashi wa o-tsuke shimasu ka? · Would you like mustard with that?
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At a Japanese Table Your Glass Is Never Empty. That Isn't Generosity. It's a Loop.
mada daijōbu desu · I'm still good, thanks.
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The Board Still Shows Your Train. The Voice Just Said It Is Not Moving.
unten o miawasete orimasu · We have temporarily suspended operations.
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You Paid 700 Yen for an Umbrella. The Hotel Barrel Was Free.
kashigasa · umbrellas for loan
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Every September Japan Puts an Egg on a Burger. The Reason Is About a Thousand Years Old.
tsukimi · moon viewing. The egg is the moon.
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Stand Left in Tokyo, Right in Osaka. Two Places Made a Rule Saying It Doesn't Matter.
tachidomatte go-riyō kudasai. · Please stand still while riding.
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You Ordered Iced Tea. They Charged You for a Lipton.
mugicha · barley tea
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That Train Announcement Is Not Asking You to Be Polite. It Is Telling You to Hang Up.
tsūwa wa go-enryo kudasai · please refrain from talking on the phone
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You Get Through to 119 in Japan. The First Thing They Ask Isn't What Happened.
kyūkyū desu · Ambulance, a medical emergency
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The Japanese Doctor Hands You a Piece of Paper Instead of Medicine. The Pills Are in a Different Building.
shohousen desu. onegai shimasu. · Here's my prescription. Please.
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If You Hear This, Do Not Run. The Door Will Win.
kakekomi jōsha wa oyame kudasai · Please do not rush onto the train
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Everyone Says Buy a Suica the Second You Land. Since March, 729 Stations Just Take the Card in Your Pocket.
tatchi kessai · tap to pay (contactless)
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Japan's Stop Sign Is a Red Triangle, and Missing It Is the Country's Number One Ticket
tomare · STOP (sign wording)
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Your Power Bank Isn't Allowed in the Overhead Bin on a Japanese Flight. It Has to Stay Where You Can Reach It.
mobairu batterī wa otemoto ni oite kudasai · Please keep your power bank within reach.
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You Read the Right Kanji Last Night. Tonight the Same Door Is the Women's Bath.
danjo irekae · men's and women's baths swap over
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Your Yakiniku Grill Went Black in Ten Minutes. You Are Not Supposed to Keep Cooking on That.
ami, otorikae shimashou ka? · Shall I change the grill for you?
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You Sat Down at a Japanese Baseball Game. Half the Stadium Is About to Sing Without You.
ōenseki wa doko desu ka? · Where's the cheering section?
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The Storm Heading for Your Trip Has a Name. Nobody in Japan Will Use It.
taifū jūni-gō · Typhoon No. 12
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Your Taxi Gets More Expensive at Night. Four Kanji Tell You When.
shin'ya ryōkin · late-night rate
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The Only Empty Seats on a Packed Tokyo Train Are Upstairs. Sitting In One Costs Extra.
guriin-sha · the paid upgrade car, a separate ticket
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That Deer Just Headbutted You. You Held the Crackers Like a Snack.
shika senbei, hito-fukuro kudasai · One pack of deer crackers, please
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Two Kyoto Buses at the Same Stop Have the Same Number. One of Them Is Going the Long Way Round.
kono basu wa Kinkaku-ji ni ikimasu ka? · Does this bus go to Kinkaku-ji?
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The Whole Platform Stepped Back at the Same Second. Nobody Looked Up.
osagari kudasai · please step back
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Everyone in the Carriage Turned at Once. The Announcement Had Just Told Them Which Door Opens.
o-deguchi wa migigawa desu · The doors will open on the right.
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The Machine Has Your Note and Keeps Spitting It Back. One Small Light Says Why.
tsurisen-gire · out of change (exact coins only)
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Japan Has Two Emergency Numbers. The One That Brings an Ambulance Is Not the One You'd Guess.
hyaku-jūkyū-ban, onegai shimasu · Call 119, please
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