by Tomoyuki Higuchi
How do you say “Thanks!” in Japanese?
Today’s phrase is :
Thanks!
ありがとう！
arigatou*
If you want to speak politely, you can say :
ありがとうございます！
arigatou* gozaimasu
*We do not clearly pronounce the vowels in the middle and at the end of a word. We pronounce “arigatou” like “arigatō”.
Pronunciation
If you want to say “Thanks a lot!”, you can say :
本当にありがとう！
hontouni arigatou*
*Do not pronounce the vowels in the middle. We pronounce “hontouni” like “hontōni”. “hontouni arigatou” sounds like “hontōni arigatō”.
“本当に (hontouni)” means “really”.
