{"id":26548,"date":"2025-06-06T19:45:52","date_gmt":"2025-06-06T10:45:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/toranomon-ls.com\/?p=26548"},"modified":"2025-06-12T10:01:28","modified_gmt":"2025-06-12T01:01:28","slug":"japanese-honorifics-the-3-types-and-how-to-use-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/toranomon-ls.com\/ja\/japanese-honorifics-the-3-types-and-how-to-use-them\/","title":{"rendered":"Japanese Honorifics -The 3 Types and How to Use Them-"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sonkeigo (\u5c0a\u656c\u8a9e) \u2014 Respectful Language to Elevate Others
Sonkeigo raises the status of the person you\u2019re speaking to or about. It\u2019s used for superiors, clients, or strangers. For example, “\u8a00\u3046 (say)” becomes “\u304a\u3063\u3057\u3083\u308b,” and “\u884c\u304f (go)” becomes “\u3044\u3089\u3063\u3057\u3083\u308b.” In business, you might say, “\u90e8\u9577\u304c\u3054\u89a7\u306b\u306a\u308b” (The manager will look at it). Misusing sonkeigo can seem rude, so it\u2019s crucial in formal settings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Kenj\u014dgo (\u8b19\u8b72\u8a9e) \u2014 Humble Language to Lower Yourself
Kenj\u014dgo humbles yourself or your in-group to show respect. For example, “\u8a00\u3046 (say)” becomes “\u7533\u3059,” and “\u3082\u3089\u3046 (receive)” becomes “\u3044\u305f\u3060\u304f.” In business, you\u2019d say, “\u79c1\u304c\u4f3a\u3044\u307e\u3059” (I will go) or “\u8cc7\u6599\u3092\u62dd\u898b\u3057\u307e\u3057\u305f” (I reviewed the document). This reflects Japanese culture\u2019s emphasis on modesty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Teineigo (\u4e01\u5be7\u8a9e) \u2014 Basic Polite Language
Teineigo uses the “\uff5e\u3067\u3059\u30fb\uff5e\u307e\u3059” form to make speech formal yet neutral. For example, “\u98df\u3079\u308b (eat)” becomes “\u98df\u3079\u307e\u3059,” and “\u884c\u304f (go)” becomes “\u884c\u304d\u307e\u3059.” While casual speech is fine with friends, teineigo is expected in public or with strangers. It\u2019s the foundation of polite communication!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mastering honorifics will make your interpersonal relationships smoother and leave a positive impression in business settings. Why not learn proper keigo that’s effective in the business world together with us? Click here<\/a> to check out our course!<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sonkeigo (\u5c0a\u656c\u8a9e) \u2014 Respectful Language to Elevate OthersSonkeigo raises the status of the person you\u2019re speaking to or about. It\u2019s used for superiors, clients, or strangers. For example, “\u8a00\u3046 (say)” becomes “\u304a\u3063\u3057\u3083\u308b,” and “\u884c\u304f (go)” becomes “\u3044\u3089\u3063\u3057\u3083\u308b.” In business, you might say, “\u90e8\u9577\u304c\u3054\u89a7\u306b\u306a\u308b” (The manager will look at it). Misusing sonkeigo can seem rude, so it\u2019s crucial in formal settings. Kenj\u014dgo (\u8b19\u8b72\u8a9e) \u2014 Humble Language to Lower YourselfKenj\u014dgo humbles yourself or your in-group to show respect. For example, “\u8a00\u3046 (say)” becomes “\u7533\u3059,” and “\u3082\u3089\u3046 (receive)” becomes “\u3044\u305f\u3060\u304f.” In business, you\u2019d say, “\u79c1\u304c\u4f3a\u3044\u307e\u3059” (I will go) or “\u8cc7\u6599\u3092\u62dd\u898b\u3057\u307e\u3057\u305f” (I reviewed the document). This reflects Japanese culture\u2019s emphasis on modesty. Teineigo (\u4e01\u5be7\u8a9e) […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2272,"featured_media":26551,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[428,29,26,336,335],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26548","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","category-business-japanese","category-japanese-courses","category-learn-japanese","category-life-in-japan"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/toranomon-ls.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26548","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/toranomon-ls.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/toranomon-ls.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/toranomon-ls.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2272"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/toranomon-ls.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26548"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/toranomon-ls.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26548\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26553,"href":"https:\/\/toranomon-ls.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26548\/revisions\/26553"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/toranomon-ls.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26551"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/toranomon-ls.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26548"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/toranomon-ls.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26548"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/toranomon-ls.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26548"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}