by Tomoyuki Higuchi
How do you say “It smells good.” in Japanese?
Today’s phrase is :
It smells good.
いい匂い。
ii nioi*
If you want to speak politely, you can say :
いい匂いですね。
ii nioidesune*
We pronounce “ii nioi” like “ī nioi”.
- It ＝ それは sorewa
- smells good ＝ いい匂い ii nioi
We often omit the subject in everyday conversation. We do not usually say “それは sorewa (= it)” in this case.
それは いい匂いIt smells good