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.
All videos
Beginner
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Your Sushi Video Taught You an Insider Word for Tea. It Belongs to the Guy Behind the Counter.
ocha kudasai · Tea, please.
Beginner
▶
It's Six in Kyoto and You're Still in a Rented Kimono. The Shop Shut at Five Thirty.
henkyaku wa nanji made desu ka? · What time do I have to bring it back by?
Survival
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The Crowd Won't Move for You. One Little Word Makes It Split.
sumimasen, chotto tōshite kudasai · excuse me, could I get through?
Survival
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Your App Taught You The Japanese Word For You. Nobody Says It To Your Face.
tanaka san · Tanaka-san. Use the person's name, not the word for you.
Beginner
▶
Every Cafe in Japan Asks You This in August. The Answer Is One Word.
aisu de onegai shimasu · iced, please
Beginner
▶
The Ramen Shop Has No Line. There's a Clipboard by the Door and Your Name Isn't on It.
koko ni namae o kakeba ii desu ka? · Should I write my name here?
Survival
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Your App's Japanese for How Are You Is a Question You Only Ask After Months Apart.
o-hisashiburi desu · It's been a long time.
Beginner
▶
The Konbini Sells Fireworks All August. Where You Can Light Them Is the Catch.
koko de hanabi o shite mo ii desu ka? · Is it okay to do fireworks here?
Beginner
▶
Haggling in Japan Does Not Work. There Are About Four Places Where It Quietly Does.
mō sukoshi yasuku narimasen ka? · Could it be a little cheaper?
Beginner
▶
Twenty Five Thousand Steps a Day. The Massage Shop Asks You One Question and You Need One Answer.
mō sukoshi tsuyoku onegai shimasu · A little stronger, please.
Beginner
▶
Two Seats on the Same Shinkansen Cost the Same. Only One of Them Sees Mount Fuji.
madogawa de onegai shimasu · A window seat, please.
Survival
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The Waiter Came Back, Said One Short Phrase, and Is Now Just Standing There.
mada desu · not yet (I need another minute)
Beginner
▶
You Booked Two Shinkansen Tickets. Japan Gave You Two Seats in Different Rows.
sumimasen, seki, kawatte moraemasen ka? · Excuse me, could we swap seats?
Beginner
▶
That Chicken Is Pink in the Middle. In Japan That Might Be the Whole Point.
kore, nama desu ka? · Is this raw?
Survival
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You Lost Your Wallet in Japan. The Odds Are Genuinely on Your Side.
saifu o nakushimashita · I lost my wallet
Survival
▶
Full Bars, Zero Internet. Here's Exactly What to Say.
tsunagarimasen · It's not connecting.
Survival
▶
You Lost Your Friend in a Festival Crowd. Japanese Has One Word for It.
tomodachi to haguremashita · I got separated from my friend.
Survival
▶
Money's In, You Can't Read a Single Button. This One Gets It Back.
torikeshi · cancel
Survival
▶
Japan Barely Has Public Bins. The Ones It Does Have Are Judging You.
moeru gomi · burnable trash
Survival
▶
You Walk Into a Japanese Clinic Sick. Reception's First Question Isn't Your Name.
shoshin desu · It's my first visit.
Survival
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The Konbini Clerk Asks You Something Before They Scan Anything. It's Not About Money.
pointo kādo wa o-mochi desu ka? · Do you have a point card?
Survival
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Japan's Mailboxes Have Two Slots. Your Postcard Home Wants the Vague One.
sonota · other / everything else
Survival
▶
There's a Barber on Every Corner in Japan. Ten Minutes, One Sentence, Done.
mijikaku shite kudasai · Shorter, please.
Beginner
▶
A Typhoon Just Ate Your Plans. Don't Cancel Them. Move Them.
hinichi o henkō dekimasu ka? · Can I change the date?
Survival
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You Loved That Ryokan. 'Thank You' Isn't the Word for Walking Out the Door.
osewa ni narimashita · Thank you for everything you did for me.
Survival
▶
Your Train Is On the Board and It Is Not Going to Stop. Two Kanji Warned You.
tsūka · passes through, does not stop here
Beginner
▶
The Japanese Cold Medicine Box Is All Kanji. One Question Gets You the Dose.
kore, ichinichi nankai nomeba ii desu ka? · How many times a day should I take this?
Survival
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The Train Is Packed and Four Seats Sit Empty. Two Kanji Explain Why.
yūsenseki · priority seat
Beginner
▶
You Want a Real Japanese Souvenir. A Lot of That Shelf Was Made Somewhere Else.
kore, nihonsei desu ka? · Is this made in Japan?
Survival
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You Order in Japan and the Staff Fire Back an Eight Syllable Word. Do Not Answer It.
kashikomarimashita · Certainly. I've got it.
Survival
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He Abandoned His Own Direction and Walked You Three Blocks. Japan Has a Word for That.
tasukarimashita · You really saved me.
Survival
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A Stranger Stops in the Shinkansen Aisle, Checks His Ticket, Then Looks at You.
machigaemashita · I got it wrong. My mistake.
Beginner
▶
Two One Way Tickets in Japan. You Just Paid Extra for the Exact Same Trip.
oufuku de onegai shimasu · Round trip, please.
Beginner
▶
The Machine Just Ate Your Five Hundred Yen. Do Not Walk Away From It.
kowarete imasu · It's broken. It isn't working.
Beginner
▶
The Cash Machine in Japan Just Gave You a Note the Bus Will Refuse.
ichiman-en satsu demo ii desu ka? · Is a ten thousand yen note okay?
Survival
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That Japanese Timetable Has Two Columns. Reading the Wrong One Costs You an Hour.
donichishuku · Saturdays, Sundays and holidays
Survival
▶
The Fireworks Are Tonight. So Is the Typhoon.
sumimasen, chuushi desu ka? · Excuse me, is it cancelled?
Survival
▶
You Are Half Asleep on a Japanese Train. One Word Means Everybody Gets Off.
shuuten · the final stop, the end of the line
Survival
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The Staff Says One Sentence, Then Walks Away. You Are Not Being Ignored.
shoushou omachi kudasai · One moment, please
Beginner
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Say Two Words of Japanese and Someone Will Call You Fluent. Now What?
mada mada desu · I've still got a long way to go
Survival
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The Cashier Sentence in Japan That Japanese People Themselves Say Is Wrong
sen'en kara oazukari shimasu · I'll take the one thousand yen
Beginner
▶
You Missed the Last Train in Tokyo. There Is a Door That Costs Two Thousand Yen.
naito pakku arimasu ka? · Do you have a night pack?
Survival
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Japanese Hotels Ask Every Foreign Guest for the Same Thing. It Is Not Your Booking.
pasupōto o onegai shimasu · Your passport, please
Beginner
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Riding the Subway All Day in Japan? Say This at the Window and Stop Paying Per Ride.
ichinichi jōshaken o kudasai · A one-day pass, please
Intermediate
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Mid August a Japanese River Fills With Lanterns. Each One Is Somebody Going Home.
tourou nagashi · Floating lantern ceremony
Survival
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Your Shinkansen Ticket Is Actually Two Tickets. The Gate Wants Both.
tokkyūken · limited express ticket (the second ticket)
Beginner
▶
A Phone Is Sitting Alone on a Table in Tokyo. It Is Not Lost. It Is a Fence.
seki, totteru n desu · Sorry, this seat's taken
Beginner
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That Cheerful Jingle on the Japanese Platform Is Not Decoration. It Is a Countdown.
doa ga shimarimasu · The doors are closing
Page 3 of 6 · 279 videos
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