In this guide
I like how much you can do with a greeting. Even while you’re still learning to hold a conversation in Japanese, you can say good morning to your teacher or wish a friend good night. Those exchanges are brief, but they give you a way to take part in the ordinary moments around you.
The words are easier to remember when you have a particular moment in mind. A morning hello to a close friend can be shorter than the one you’d use with a teacher. And at night, greeting someone as you arrive and saying good night as you leave call for different expressions. The person and what you’re doing help explain why you’d choose one phrase over another.
We’ll look at Japanese greetings with those situations in view, so you can choose phrases for your own meetings and goodbyes. We’ll begin with the hellos you can use through the day, then work through the ways to part, including how to say when you’ll meet again.
Hello, from morning to evening
Good morning is おはよう (ohayō) with someone you know well, or the more polite おはようございます (ohayō gozaimasu). I’d learn the longer form first: it’s useful with a teacher or someone you don’t know well. With a close friend, the short form is natural.
おはよう。
Ohayō.
Good morning. — Greeting a friend at breakfast.
おはようございます。
Ohayō gozaimasu.
Good morning. — Greeting your teacher before a morning lesson.
For a daytime hello or good afternoon, use こんにちは (konnichiwa). In the evening, greet someone with こんばんは (konbanwa), meaning good evening. Learn these as whole expressions; neither needs an extra polite ending like the morning greeting’s ございます.
こんにちは。
Konnichiwa.
Hello. / Good afternoon. — Meeting a neighbor one afternoon.
こんばんは。
Konbanwa.
Good evening. — Arriving at an evening class.
| Situation | Japanese | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| Morning, with someone familiar | おはよう | ohayō |
| Morning, more polite | おはようございます | ohayō gozaimasu |
| Daytime hello / good afternoon | こんにちは | konnichiwa |
| Evening hello / good evening | こんばんは | konbanwa |
I wouldn’t look for an exact hour to switch greetings. Use morning, daytime and evening as broad guides, with the setting and relationship in mind. A short greeting can be perfectly at home between people who know each other well.
Write は, say wa
Write こんにちは and こんばんは with は at the end, and pronounce that final kana wa. In おはよう, the は keeps its usual ha sound: o-ha-yō. The bar in ō marks a long o sound; ohayō can also be written ohayoo.
Write the ending of hello
Complete the standard written daytime greeting. Type the one missing hiragana character; its sound here is wa.
こんにち＿
Meeting someone new in the morning
You arrive at a morning volunteer session and meet the organizer for the first time. Choose a greeting that fits both the time and the unfamiliar relationship.
Which greeting would you choose?
Good evening on arrival, good night at the end
こんばんは is the hello at the start of an evening visit. To wish someone good night at bedtime or a nighttime parting, use familiar おやすみ (oyasumi) or the more polite おやすみなさい (oyasuminasai). Here’s the same visit at its two ends:
こんばんは。
Konbanwa.
Good evening. — You arrive at a friend’s home for an evening visit.
おやすみ。
Oyasumi.
Good night. — You’re leaving that friend for the night.
At bedtime, the good-night forms work even when you’re staying in the same home. I find this pair easier to remember with the visit in mind: one welcomes the person, the other ends the evening together.
Good night at your host’s home
You’re staying overnight with a family friend you don’t know well. As you head to bed, you want to wish your host good night politely.
Which phrase fits your purpose and relationship?
Optional: add a sentence after hello
For a first meeting, you can add a complete introduction after your greeting. Put your name before です (desu) to say “I’m …” politely. You can leave out “I” when it’s clear you’re introducing yourself. For a short exchange after hello, the guide to Japanese pronouns shows how to add a question about the other person.
こんにちは。アレックスです。
Konnichiwa. Arekkusu desu.
Hello. I’m Alex. — Introducing yourself at an afternoon meetup.
アレックス is Alex written in Japanese. Use it for practice, or write your own name in Latin letters while you learn its Japanese spelling. The pattern stays the same: name + です.
With friends: see you or see you tomorrow
With friends, またね (mata ne) and じゃあ、また (jaa, mata) are casual ways to say “see you.” They leave the day unstated, whether you’ve arranged the next meeting or are leaving it open.
じゃあ、また。
Jaa, mata.
Well, see you. — Leaving a friend after lunch, with no next meeting arranged.
To name tomorrow as the next meeting, use また明日 (mata ashita). 明日 means tomorrow, so it adds that detail to your goodbye.
また明日。
Mata ashita.
See you tomorrow. — Parting from a friend you’ll meet again tomorrow.
At a nighttime parting, you can also say おやすみ and add また明日. The first wishes your friend good night; the second says when you’ll meet. They do different jobs, so they work together.
A goodbye with plans for next week
You and a close friend finish an afternoon bike ride on Sunday. You won’t see each other again until next Saturday. Select every casual see-you phrase below that fits.
Which phrases can you use?
Polite goodbyes at work and school
失礼します (shitsurei shimasu) is polite leave-taking. You can use it when leaving a teacher’s office after a visit, for example.
失礼します。
Shitsurei shimasu.
Goodbye. / Excuse me. — Politely taking your leave after a visit.
When you’re going home while colleagues remain at work, use お先に失礼します (osaki ni shitsurei shimasu). The longer expression adds that you’re leaving before them. I’d learn it as one phrase for that familiar workplace moment.
お先に失礼します。
Osaki ni shitsurei shimasu.
I’ll be leaving now. — You’re going home while your colleagues remain at work.
さようなら (sayōnara) is used for teacher–student goodbyes at school and for longer partings. A student can say it after an ordinary class, even with another lesson tomorrow: it needn’t mean “goodbye forever.”
さようなら。
Sayōnara.
Goodbye. — A student saying goodbye to their teacher after class.
For an everyday “see you” to a friend, I’d usually reach for またね or じゃあ、また.
| Situation | Japanese | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| Good night: familiar / more polite | おやすみ / おやすみなさい | oyasumi / oyasuminasai |
| Casual see you | またね / じゃあ、また | mata ne / jaa, mata |
| See you tomorrow | また明日 | mata ashita |
| Polite leave-taking | 失礼します | shitsurei shimasu |
| Leaving work before colleagues | お先に失礼します | osaki ni shitsurei shimasu |
| Teacher–student goodbye / longer parting | さようなら | sayōnara |
Your shift ends before the others’
Your shift ends in the evening. The rest of your team will work for another hour. Choose the polite farewell that specifically acknowledges leaving ahead of them.
Which expression includes that detail?
Choose one greeting you can use this week
Picture a meeting or goodbye you might have this week. Think about the time of day, how well you know the person, whether you’re arriving or parting, and when you’ll meet again. Choose a greeting before looking back at the tables, then explain your choice in English.
Optional: write a complete introduction
Imagine a first meeting. Write a greeting for that time of day, then add your name + です to say who you are. Use アレックス or your own name in Latin letters for practice. For grammar and spelling feedback, copy the completed introduction into the separate checker and submit it there.
Copy your Japanese text, then paste it into the checker. This writing space does not assess or save your text.
About the author
B. Rungswell
B. Rungswell is the editor of the Bunpo Check blog and a native English speaker who has passed JLPT N1. Drawing on many years of life in Japan and experience working at Japanese companies, Rungswell writes practical guides to Japanese grammar for English-speaking learners.