志Japanese by CCN
Life in Japan

Useful Japanese for Daily Life in Japan

Where can you learn the Japanese you need for shopping, trains and the city office? Start here. Each of the three situations below uses the same simple pattern: the sentence to say first, a short conversation, and the words you will see on signs and forms, with readings and romaji.

Choose a situation

Japanese for ShoppingThe sentence to say first, a checkout conversation, and words for prices, bags and dates Japanese for Trains and StationsThe sentence to say first, conversations at the platform and ticket office, and station words Japanese for the City OfficeThe sentence to say first, conversations for moving in and health insurance, and words on forms

How each page works

  1. Say this first. One sentence that gets you started, with its reading, romaji and English.
  2. Follow the conversation. Two short conversations show what you will hear back, and how to answer.
  3. Learn the words. A table of the words you will see on signs, forms and receipts.

More free study material

To study Japanese for daily life step by step, the Japan Foundation publishes Irodori, a free course with worksheets and word lists. To rehearse whole conversations line by line, try Japanese Talk. To read and write the characters, see the JLPT kanji lists and the hiragana and katakana charts.

Questions about learning daily Japanese

Where can I learn useful Japanese for daily life in Japan?

Start with the situations you meet first: shopping, trains and the city office. Each page on this site gives the sentence to say first, a short conversation, and the words you will see, with readings and romaji. For a full free course, the Japan Foundation publishes Irodori.

What should I learn first if I have just arrived in Japan?

Learn これをください (Kore o kudasai, "This one, please") for shopping, この電車は＿＿駅に止まりますか for trains, and 転入届を出したいです for the city office. Then use the conversations on each page to practice the replies.

Do I need to read Japanese to use these pages?

No. Every line has the Japanese, its reading in hiragana, romaji and English. Learning the reading of the words on signs and forms is a good next step.

Sources

The three situation pages list their own sources. The Japanese was written for this page and checked for natural, polite everyday speech. Readings are in hiragana and Hepburn romaji. Shops, stations and offices differ, so follow the instructions you are given on the day.