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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You Missed Your Reserved Shinkansen. Do Not Buy Another Ticket.
noriokuremashita. · I missed my train.
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One Piece Left on the Plate. Nobody Will Touch It. Japan Has a Name for It.
enryo naku dōzo. · Go on, don't hold back.
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The Best Food in the Station Is Behind a Gate You Have No Ticket For
nyūjōken o kudasai. · One admission ticket, please.
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A Hotel Room in Japan Without a Kettle? Just Ask for One.
ketoru arimasu ka? · Is there a kettle?
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When a Japanese Shop Starts Playing This Song, You Are Being Asked to Leave.
heiten · closing for the day
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Same Room, Two Prices. The Cheaper One Is Not a Discount.
shukuhaku · an overnight stay (the other row, 休憩, is a short rest block)
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Your App Taught You "I Want." Say That to Staff and You Sound Like a Four-Year-Old.
mōfu, onegai shimasu · a blanket, please
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A Stranger Offers You a Half-Price Bar Upstairs. This Is the One You Walk Past.
machiawase desu · I'm meeting someone
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You're on the Right Train. You're in the Wrong Half of It.
kirihanashi · uncoupling: this train splits here
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The Ambulance Asks Where You Are. The Answer Is on the Vending Machine.
jūsho ga wakarimasen. · I don't know the address.
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Two of Your Four Shinkansen Seats Face Backwards. Nobody Tells You What to Do About It.
seki o mawashite mo ii desu ka? · Is it okay if we turn the seats around?
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No Eating While You Walk, No Bins. So Where Does the Skewer Go?
gomi, onegai dekimasu ka? · Could you take this rubbish for me?
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It Is Ten at Night, You Are Sick, and a Plastic Sheet Says Nobody in the Building Can Sell You That.
yakuzaishi fuzai · no pharmacist on duty
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You Won the Plastic Bag Argument. Now the Cashier Is Holding a Strip of Tape and Waiting.
tēpu de yoroshii desu ka? · Is tape okay? (instead of a bag)
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Even Japanese People Cannot Make Out What That Sushi Chain Announcement Says. Two Words in It Mean the Next Plate Is Yours.
mamonaku go-chūmon no shina ga tōchaku itashimasu · Your order will be arriving shortly.
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You Sat Down at the Ramen Counter and Nobody Is Taking Your Order. You Missed the Machine by the Door.
shokken wa saki desu ka? · Do I buy the ticket first?
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It Is Thirty Five Degrees and Your Nose Will Not Stop Running. You Did Not Catch a Cold in Japan.
kafunshou desu. · I have hay fever.
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Tell a Japanese Friend Good News and She'll Yell 'Liar' Right at You
hontō desu ka? · Really?! / For real?
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Some Ramen Shops Upsize Your Noodles for Free. They'll Never Offer It in English.
ōmori de onegaishimasu · Large portion, please
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The Beef Jerky in Your Bag Is a Criminal Offence at Japanese Arrivals
iie, motte imasen · No, I don't have any
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Your Lunch Set Comes With Coffee. In Japan It Turns Up Next to the Soup.
shokugo ni onegai shimasu. · After the meal, please.
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You Bought Trousers in Tokyo and They're Ten Centimetres Too Long. The Shop Fixes That Before You Leave.
susoage dekimasu ka? · Can you hem these?
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People Here Hold a Cafe Table With Just a Phone. So Why Does the Station Warn You About This?
okibiki · theft of a bag you set down
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Everyone Here Cycles Under an Umbrella. Since April, That's a Ticket.
kasasashi unten · riding a bike while holding an umbrella
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A Siren Goes Off Over the Whole Neighbourhood in Japan. One Word in the Announcement Tells You Not to Run.
kore wa kunren desu · This is a drill.
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You Had a Bath at a Japanese Home and Pulled the Plug. Three People Were Still Waiting for That Water.
oyu wa nukanaide kudasai · Please don't drain the tub.
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You Locked Your Passport in the Hotel Safe Like Everyone Said. In Japan That's the Wrong Move.
pasupōto o misete kudasai · Please show me your passport.
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The Yellow Bumpy Strip in Every Japanese Station Is Not Decoration.
tenji burokku · tactile paving
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You Are Bowing Way Too Much in Japan. This Is the One People Actually Use.
eshaku · a small nod bow
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On November 1st, Japan's Tax Free Discount Stops Happening at the Till.
menzei no tetsuzuki wa doko desu ka? · Where do I do the tax free procedure?
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You Bought the Wrong Size in Tokyo. Japan Mostly Won't Refund You. Ask for This Instead.
koukan dekimasu ka? · Can I exchange this?
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Your Tokyo Train Was Five Minutes Late. The Station Hands You a Note Proving It.
chien shoumeisho o onegai shimasu · A delay certificate, please.
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Kyoto Now Taxes You Per Night, Per Person. At the Top End That's Ten Thousand Yen Each.
shukuhakuzei · lodging tax
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Your IC Card Opens Every Gate in Tokyo. Out Here There Is No Gate, and No Anybody.
mujin-eki · unstaffed station
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You Said No Meat, No Fish. They Said No Problem. Your Miso Soup Still Has Fish In It.
dashi ni sakana wa haitte imasu ka? · Is there fish in the broth?
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The Card Machine Turns to Face You. Four Kanji, a Blinking Box, and a Queue Behind You.
anshou bangou · PIN
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The Beach Was Packed Last Week. Today One Small Sign Is Keeping Everyone Out of the Water.
kurage chuui · caution: jellyfish
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The Festival Stall Still Has a Queue. The Little Board at the Front Says the Food Ran Out Ages Ago.
urikire · sold out
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Two Weeks In and Everything You Own Is Damp. The Machine Only Speaks Kanji.
kansou · dry
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Say This One Line First and Watch Every Japanese Person Slow Down for You
nihongo, chotto dake hanasemasu · I can only speak a little Japanese
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You Get to Your Tokyo Hotel at Midnight and There Is No Toothbrush. Nothing Is Missing.
gojiyū ni otori kudasai · Please help yourself
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Japanese Has a Word for People Who Can't Drink Hot Tea. It Translates to Cat Tongue.
nekojita nan desu · I can't handle hot food or drinks
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Japanese Has a Phrase That Literally Means I Am About to Be Rude. You Say It First, and Then It's the Politest Thing in the Room.
shitsurei shimasu · Excuse me.
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You Ordered One Coffee in an Old Japanese Cafe and Breakfast Turned Up. Nobody Charged You For It.
mōningu, yattemasu ka? · Are you doing the morning set?
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A Twelve Thousand Yen Melon Isn't Food in Japan. It's a Greeting Card, and the Counter Staff Are About to Ask Which One You're Buying.
jibun-yō desu · It's for myself.
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An Empty Taxi Drove Straight Past You in Tokyo With Your Arm in the Air. Two Kanji in the Window Had Already Said No.
kaisō · out of service
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Your Anime Taught You to Call People chan. On a Stranger It Lands Like Calling Your Waiter Sweetie.
-san · the default polite name-ending for any adult
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There's a Free Hot Spring Outside That Station and Everyone Walks Straight Past It.
ashiyu · foot bath, a public hot-spring bath for your feet with your clothes on
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