How to Say “Sorry, I’m busy.” in Japanese

How do you say “Sorry, I’m busy.” in Japanese?

Today’s phrase is :

Sorry, I’m busy.

ごめん、いま忙しい。

 gomen ima isogashii

If you want to speak politely, you can say :

すみません、いま忙しいです。

 sumimasen* ima isogashiidesu

*We pronounce like “suimasen” in spoken language.


  • Sorry = ごめん gomen
  • I’m … = わたしは … watashiwa … 
  • busy = 忙しい isogashii

We do not usually say “わたしは (= I)” in everyday conversation.


ごめん
sorry

いま
now

忙しい
busy