· 7 min read
Japanese Phrases for Beginners: First 30
By Language Lab editorial team
30 Japanese phrases for beginners from NHK's Easy Japanese course: introductions, questions, reactions and polite set phrases, with script and meaning.
Good first Japanese phrases are short, polite and reusable. Begin with an introduction: Tamu desu, gakusee desu means I'm Tam, I'm a student, and you replace the name and the job with your own. Add where you are from with kara kimashita. Then learn the questions that keep a conversation alive: Kore wa nan desu ka, what is this; Doo iu imi desu ka, what does that mean; and Yukkuri hanashite kudasai, please speak slowly. Finish with common set phrases such as Arigatoo gozaimasu and Yoroshiku onegai-shimasu. The 30 phrases below are taken from NHK WORLD-JAPAN's Easy Japanese course for beginners and use its romanisation, which writes long vowels double.
Introduce yourself
| Japanese | How to say it | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| タムです。学生です。 | Tamu desu. Gakusee desu. | I'm Tam. I'm a student. |
| ベトナムから来ました。 | Betonamu kara kimashita. | I'm from Vietnam. |
| よろしくお願いします。 | Yoroshiku onegai-shimasu. | Nice to meet you. |
| 友達のあやかさんです。 | Tomodachi no Ayaka-san desu. | This is my friend, Ayaka-san. |
| 大学で日本語を勉強します。 | Daigaku de Nihongo o benkyoo-shimasu. | I'm going to study Japanese at a university. |
| 日本へ行ってみたいです。 | Nihon e itte mitai desu. | I want to go to Japan someday. |
The frame in the first line is a name or a noun followed by desu. NHK teaches it in its second lesson, introducing yourself with name and occupation. The second line is its third lesson, saying where you're from: put your country before kara kimashita.
Ask simple questions
| Japanese | How to say it | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| これは何ですか。 | Kore wa nan desu ka. | What is this? |
| はるさんハウスはどこですか。 | Haru-san-Hausu wa doko desu ka. | Where is Haru-san House? |
| このドライヤーはいくらですか。 | Kono doraiyaa wa ikura desu ka. | How much is this hair dryer? |
| お守りはありますか。 | Omamori wa arimasu ka. | Do you have any lucky charms? |
| どうやってするんですか。 | Doo yatte surun desu ka. | How do you do it? |
| 一緒に行きませんか。 | Issho ni ikimasen ka. | Why don't we go together? |
Notice that every one of these ends in ka, with nan in the question about what, doko in the one about where and ikura in the one about how much.
Keep the conversation going
| Japanese | How to say it | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ゆっくり話してください。 | Yukkuri hanashite kudasai. | Please speak slowly. |
| すみません。よくわかりません。 | Sumimasen. Yoku wakarimasen. | I'm sorry. I don't quite understand. |
| どういう意味ですか。 | Doo iu imi desu ka. | What does that mean? |
| わかりました。 | Wakarimashita. | All right. |
| そうですか。 | Soo desu ka. | Oh, really? |
| ほんとですね。 | Honto desu ne. | It really is. |
These six are worth learning early, because they let you stay in a conversation you only half understand.
Say what you like and want
| Japanese | How to say it | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 私はこの猫が好きです。 | Watashi wa kono neko ga suki desu. | I like this cat. |
| 雪が見たいです。 | Yuki ga mitai desu. | I want to see the snow. |
| すごく楽しかったです。 | Sugoku tanoshikatta desu. | It was really fun. |
| おいしいです。 | Oishii desu. | It's delicious. |
| 楽しみです。 | Tanoshimi desu. | I'm looking forward to it. |
| すごい！ | Sugoi! | This is amazing! |
Polite set phrases
| Japanese | How to say it | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ありがとうございます。 | Arigatoo gozaimasu. | Thank you very much. |
| どうぞ。 | Doozo. | Please enjoy it. / Go ahead. / Here you are. |
| いただきます。 | Itadakimasu. | Let's eat. / I'm grateful for this meal. |
| お久しぶりです。 | Ohisashiburi desu. | Long time no see. |
| お大事に。 | Odaiji ni. | Take care. |
| がんばります！ | Ganbarimasu! | I'll do my best! |
Read them in Japanese script
Romanised spelling is a crutch for the first weeks. NHK explains that Japanese has three types of characters: hiragana and katakana, which are phonetic symbols each representing one syllable, and kanji, each of which stands for a meaning. You can see all three in the tables above. NHK offers hiragana and katakana charts to download as PDF; learning them lets you read the first column directly.
How to practise
- Make each phrase yours. Change the name, the country, the thing you like.
- Say it aloud every time you study it.
- Test yourself from English to Japanese, not only the other way.
- Come back to the list tomorrow and next week. A 2013 review of learning research rated practice testing and distributed practice as high utility, and rereading as low.
- Then start the course itself: NHK's Easy Japanese has 48 lessons, each built on one phrase like these.
Language Lab's Japanese course is built around voiced real-life scenarios with an AI tutor, so you can use these phrases in a spoken exchange and hear them come back.
Frequently asked
What Japanese phrases should a beginner learn first?
An introduction, a few questions and the repair phrases: your name plus desu, your country plus kara kimashita, Kore wa nan desu ka for what is this, and Yukkuri hanashite kudasai for please speak slowly.
How do I introduce myself in Japanese?
Say your name and add desu. NHK's example is Tamu desu, gakusee desu: I'm Tam, I'm a student. Then Yoroshiku onegai-shimasu, nice to meet you.
How do I say where I am from in Japanese?
Your country followed by kara kimashita. NHK's example is Betonamu kara kimashita, I'm from Vietnam.
How do I say thank you in Japanese?
Arigatoo gozaimasu, thank you very much.
How do I say I don't understand in Japanese?
Sumimasen, yoku wakarimasen: I'm sorry, I don't quite understand. To ask what a word means, say Doo iu imi desu ka.
Should beginners learn phrases in romaji or in Japanese script?
Use romanised spelling to get started, and learn hiragana and katakana early. They are phonetic, with each symbol representing one syllable, and NHK publishes charts for both.
Sources: NHK WORLD-JAPAN, Easy Japanese: Conversation lessons, Key Phrases, Bonus Phrases and Japanese Letters; Dunlosky et al., Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 2013. Checked on 13 October 2026. Photo: Deer in Nara Park under autumn leaves, Marek Ślusarczyk (Tupungato) / CC BY 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons).
