Conversation phrases: Stage 1

292 phrases in 68 chunks: getting to know you, likes and free time, what do you think, small talk and 8 more.

292 phrases in 68 chunks, learned alongside Stage 1 of the main list. Start with Where you're from and use Next at the bottom of each page.

1. 1Where you're fromGetting to know youdoko kara kita no? where are you from?; where did you come from?... shusshin da yo I'm from ...; I grew up in ...shusshin doko? where are you from?; where did you grow up?jimoto doko? where's your hometown?umare mo sodachi mo ... born and raised in ...
2. 2What you do for workGetting to know youdonna shigoto? what kind of work is it?; what do you do?... de hataraiteru I work at ...; I work in ...doko de hataraiteru no? where do you work?... kankei no shigoto o shiteru I work in ...; I do something to do with ...kaishain da yo I work for a company; I'm an office worker
3. 3Where you live nowGetting to know youima doko ni sunderu no? where do you live now?... ni sunderu I live in ...hitorigurashi? do you live on your own?; living alone?jikka ni sunderu I live with my parents; I live at hometsuukin dono gurai? how long's your commute?
4. 4Why you came to JapanGetting to know younande nihon ni kita no? what made you come to Japan?; why did you come to Japan?kikkake wa? what got you started?; how did that come about?shigoto de kita I came over for workzutto nihon ni kitakatta n da I'd always wanted to come to Japan... ga kikkake de it started with ...; ... is what got me into it
5. 5How long you're hereGetting to know younihon ni kite dono gurai? how long have you been in Japan?...nen gurai ni naru it's been about ... yearskita bakkari I've only just got here; I just arriveditsu made iru no? how long are you here for?; until when are you staying?mada kimetenai I haven't decided yet
6. 6Speaking in JapaneseGetting to know younihongo benkyou shiteru n da I'm learning Japanesenihongo de hanasou let's talk in Japaneseeigo hanaseru? do you speak English?; can you speak English?
7. 7Compliments on your JapaneseGetting to know younihongo jouzu desu ne your Japanese is goodmada mada desu I've still got a long way to gonihongo doko de benkyou shita no? where did you learn your Japanese?dokugaku da yo I taught myself; self-taught
8. 8Meeting a friend's friendGetting to know youaete ureshii so glad to meet you; great to see you... no tomodachi na n da I'm a friend of ...'srain koukan shiyou let's swap LINE contactsinsuta yatteru? are you on Instagram?... kara hanashi wa kiiteru I've heard about you from ...; ... has told me about you
9. 9Describing your hometownGetting to know youdonna tokoro? what's it like there?; what kind of place is it?... no dono hen? whereabouts in ...?nanimo nai tokoro da yo there's not much there; it's the middle of nowheremotomoto wa ... originally ...; at first ...
10. 10Life in JapanGetting to know younihon no seikatsu wa dou? how are you finding life in Japan?; how's life in Japan?nihon no doko ga suki? what do you like about Japan?daibu nareta I've pretty much settled in; I'm much more used to it now
11. 11Brothers sisters and familyGetting to know youkyoudai iru? do you have any brothers or sisters?nannin kazoku? how many are there in your family?hitorikko na n da I'm an only childani ga hitori iru I've got one older brotheryonin kazoku da yo there are four of us in my family
12. 12Hobbies and what you likeLikes and free timeshumi wa? what are your hobbies?; what do you do for fun?... ga shumi na n da ... is my hobby; I'm into ...... tte suki? do you like ...?... no ga suki I like (doing) ...shumi tte iu hodo ja nai kedo it's not really a hobby, but ...
13. 13Weekends and free timeLikes and free timeshuumatsu wa daitai ... on weekends I usually ...jikan ga aru toki wa ... when I've got time, I ...ie de gorogoro shiteru I just laze around at home
14. 14Do you do thisLikes and free timeeiga toka miru? do you watch films much?; do you watch movies and stuff?ryouri suru? do you cook?nanika supootsu yatteru? do you play any sport?geemu suru? do you play video games?jimu ni kayotteru I go to the gym (regularly)
15. 15Food you likeLikes and free timesuki na tabemono wa? what's your favourite food?tabeta koto aru? have you ever tried it?; have you ever eaten ...?nandemo taberu yo I'll eat anything; I'm not fussysuki kirai aru? anything you don't eat?; are you picky?
16. 16Places you've beenLikes and free time... itta koto aru? have you been to ...?; have you ever been to ...?mada itta koto nai I haven't been there yet; I've never beenitsuka itte mitai I'd love to go someday; I want to go one daynihon de doko itta? where have you been in Japan?yoku ryokou suru? do you travel much?; do you travel a lot?
17. 17Shows and favouritesLikes and free timesaikin nanika omoshiroi no mita? seen anything good lately?ima nanika dorama miteru? are you watching any shows at the moment?oshi wa dare? who's your fave? (idol, band member, character)
18. 18Music and gigsLikes and free timedonna ongaku kiku no? what kind of music do you listen to?suki na aatisuto iru? any artists you like?; got a favourite artist?raibu toka iku? do you go to gigs?; do you go to concerts?karaoke de nani utau? what do you sing at karaoke?
19. 19How long and how goodLikes and free timedono gurai yatteru no? how long have you been doing it?saikin hajimeta n da I only took it up recently; I just startedmukashi ... yatteta I used to do ...; I used to play ...zenzen heta da kedo I'm not any good at it, though
20. 20Asking their viewWhat do you thinkdou omou? what do you think?sou omowanai? don't you think?; don't you agree?jissai dou na no? what's it really like?; how is it, honestly?kansou wa? so what did you think?; your thoughts?ano nyuusu mita? did you see that news?; did you hear about that?
21. 21Saying it's goodWhat do you thinkii n ja nai? sounds good to me; why not?; I think it's fineomoshirokatta that was interesting; that was fun; that was funnyii kanji nice; going well; looks goodari da ne that works; that's an option; I'm into thatmite son wa nai it's worth a watch; you won't regret seeing it
22. 22Saying it's not greatWhat do you thinkimaichi not quite there; a bit lacking; so-soanmari suki ja nai I'm not that keen on it; I don't really like itnanka chigau something's off; not quite itkitai shiteta hodo ja nakatta it wasn't as good as I'd hopedwatashi ni wa awanakatta it wasn't for me; it didn't suit me
23. 23Liking it your wayWhat do you thinkwarukunai not bad; pretty goodkirai ja nai I don't mind it; I kind of like it... tokoro ga suki I like how ...; what I like is ...watashi wa suki da kedo well, I like it (even if others don't)
24. 24Framing your own viewWhat do you thinkyoku wakannai kedo I'm not really sure, but ...; I don't know much, but ...watashi dattara ... if it were me, I'd ...; if I were you, ...kojinteki ni wa personally; for mewatashiteki ni wa for me; as far as I'm concernedbutchake honestly; to be blunt; let's be real
25. 25Comparing here and thereWhat do you think... to kurabete dou? how does it compare with ...?sonna ni kawaranai it's not that different; about the samenani ga ichiban chigau? what's the biggest difference?yappari ... ga ichiban you can't beat ...; ... is the best after allsumiyasui? is it a nice place to live?; is it easy to live there?
26. 26It dependsWhat do you thinktoki to baai ni yoru it depends on the situation; it dependsnantomo ienai hard to say; I can't really saymuzukashii tokoro da ne that's a tough one; it's a tricky questionichigai ni wa ienai you can't really generalise; it's hard to saykuni ni yotte chigau yo ne it differs from country to country, doesn't it
27. 27How have you beenSmall talksaikin dou? how's it going lately?choushi dou? how are you doing?; how's it going?saikin isogashii? been busy lately?genki datta? how have you been?nanika kawatta koto atta? anything new with you?
28. 28Nothing much newSmall talktoku ni nanimo nai yo nothing much, really; nothing in particularaikawarazu da yo same as ever; nothing much newbochibochi so-so; getting by; not badkawari nai no change; all well, same as evernantoka yatteru getting by; hanging in there
29. 29Busy tired or restedSmall talkbatabata shiteta things have been hectic; I've been rushed off my feetsaikin chotto tsukaregimi I've been a bit worn out latelychotto nebusoku I haven't been sleeping enough; a bit short on sleepyatto ochitsuita things have finally settled downyoku neta I slept well
30. 30Last weekendSmall talkshuumatsu nani shita? what did you do on the weekend?tanoshikatta that was fun; I had a great timeshuumatsu yukkuri dekita? did you get to relax on the weekend?renkyuu dokoka itta? go anywhere over the long weekend?
31. 31How work is goingSmall talkshigoto dou? how's work?shigoto nani shiteru no? what do you do for work?zangyou ooi? do you do a lot of overtime?
32. 32Your newsSmall talk... ni hamatteru I'm really into ...; I'm hooked on ...mae ni itteta ..., dou natta? how did that ... you mentioned turn out?hikkoshita n da I moved house; I've movedtenshoku shita n da I changed jobshisashiburi ni ... shita I ... for the first time in ages
33. 33Weather and seasonsSmall talksuzushiku natte kita ne it's getting cooler, isn't itame bakkari da ne it's been nothing but rain, huhmushiatsui ne so humid, huh; it's muggykandansa sugoi ne the temperature's all over the place, huhkafunshou aru? do you get hay fever?
34. 34Uh-huh I'm listeningReactingun un uh-huh; yeah, yeah (I'm listening)fuun hmm; I see; huhhai hai yeah, yeah; okay, okay
35. 35Really seriouslyReactingee! what?!; no way!sou na no? oh, really?; is that so?maji ka seriously?; oh manuso desho you're kidding, right?; no way
36. 36Oh I didn't knowReactingsou datta n da oh, so that's what it was; I had no ideashiranakatta I didn't know (that); I had no ideasou iu koto ka oh, so that's it; now I get ithonto da oh, it's true; you're rightkizukanakatta I didn't notice; I didn't realize
37. 37So true so relatableReactingwakaru wakaru I know, I know; I totally get itsore na right?!; so truearu aru so relatable; that always happens
38. 38Sounds fun looks goodReactingtanoshisou sounds fun; looks funomoshirosou sounds interesting; looks goodtaihensou sounds rough; that must be hardoishisou looks deliciousyosasou looks good; seems niceoishikatta that was delicious
39. 39Good for youReactingii jan nice!; that's good; why not?yokatta ne good for you; I'm glad for youii naa lucky you; I'm jealous; that's nicenaisu nice!; good one
40. 40And then whatAsking and following upsore de? and then?; so?nani ga atta no? what happened?dou natta no? how did it turn out?; so what happened?nani nani what, what?; tell me!hoka ni wa? what else?; anything else?
41. 41How was itAsking and following updou datta? how was it?nani ga ichiban yokatta? what was the best part?dare to itta no? who'd you go with?daijoubu datta? were you okay?; did it go all right?
42. 42And you your takeAsking and following upsotchi wa? what about you?; and you?saikin nani ni hamatteru? what are you into lately?dotchi ga suki? which do you prefer?; which do you like better?nande sou omou no? why do you think so?
43. 43What's it likeAsking and following up... tte dou? how's ...?; what's ... like?donna kanji? what's it like?; how's it going?nareta? getting used to it?; settled in?
44. 44Asking about peopleAsking and following updonna hito? what's he like?; what's she like?dou yatte shiriatta no? how did you two meet?nante itteta? what did they say?
45. 45Yes exactlyAgreeing and disagreeingsou sou yes, exactly!; oh rightda yo ne right?!; I know, righthonto sore so true; exactlysorya sou da well, of course; naturallysou itteru jan that's what I'm saying!
46. 46Me too I agreeAgreeing and disagreeingwatashi mo me toosou omou I think sodoukan same here; I agreesono toori exactly; that's right
47. 47OK got itAgreeing and disagreeingokkee OK; all rightryoukai got it; rogerhaai okay!; yes!; coming!mondai nai no problem; it's finewakarimashita okay, understood; I see
48. 48Hmm I'm not sureAgreeing and disagreeinguun hmm; well...maa ne well, yeah; I guess sodou darou hmm, I'm not sure; I wonderhito ni yoru depends on the person
49. 49Not reallyAgreeing and disagreeingsou demo nai not really; not so muchsoko made ja nai it's not that bad; not that muchsou to mo kagiranai not necessarily
50. 50True butAgreeing and disagreeingsore wa sou da kedo that's true, but...kimochi wa wakaru kedo I get how you feel, but...sou wa ikanai it's not that simple; not so fast
51. 51Moving the story alongTelling what happenedsore de sa and so...; so then...soshitara sa and then, guess what...sore ga sa well, here's the thing... (a twist is coming)ki ga tsuitara before I knew it; next thing I knew
52. 52Sympathy for a hard timeFeelings and empathytaihen datta ne that must have been hard; what an ordealkimochi wakaru I know how you feelsore wa tsurai ne that sounds really hard; that must hurtkawaisou ni poor thing; that's so sad
53. 53Telling them not to worryFeelings and empathyki ni shinaide don't worry about it; never mindzenzen daijoubu totally fine; no problem at allshinpai shinaide don't worrynantoka naru yo it'll work out; it'll be fine somehow
54. 54Saying you are worn outFeelings and empathytsukareta I'm tirednemurenakatta I couldn't sleepmou genkai I'm at my limit
55. 55Hungry and thirstyFeelings and empathyonaka suita I'm hungryonaka pekopeko I'm starvingnodo kawaita I'm thirstyhara hetta I'm starving; I'm hungry
56. 56Didn't catch thatClarifyingmou ichido onegai shimasu once more, please; could you say that again?kikoenakatta I didn't catch that; I couldn't hearyukkuri hanashite kudasai please speak slowlygomen, kiitenakatta sorry, I wasn't listeningwakarimasen I don't understand; I don't know
57. 57What do you meanClarifyingdou iu koto? what do you mean?; what's going on?nan no koto? what do you mean?; what are you talking about?dare no koto? who do you mean?nan no hanashi? what are you talking about?
58. 58What's the wordClarifyingnan dakke what was it again?nante iu n dakke what's the word for it again?hora, are you know, that thingeigo de iu to in English it's...; in English you'd say...
59. 59Hey guess whatOpening and changing the subjectano ne you know what; listenano sa hey, so...; listenchotto kiite listen to this; hear me outkiita? did you hear? (about some news)shitteta? did you know?
60. 60By the wayOpening and changing the subjecthanashi kawaru kedo to change the subject; by the waya, sou da oh, right; oh, I just rememberedsore de omoidashita kedo that reminds mehanashi modoru kedo going back to what we were saying
61. 61Wrapping upOpening and changing the subjectjaa sorosoro well, I'd better get goingmata renraku suru ne I'll be in touch; I'll get back to youjaa, sou iu koto de okay, so that's settled; right, let's go with thatjuuden kiresou my battery's about to die
62. 62Bye for nowGreetings, thanks and sorrymata ne see you; byejaa mata see you then; bye for nowmata ashita see you tomorrowmata ato de see you later (today); talk laterbaibai bye-bye
63. 63Saying hiGreetings, thanks and sorryyahhoo hiya!; hey!aitakatta I missed you; I wanted to see youdoumo thanks; hikonbanwa good evening; hi (after dark)odekake desu ka heading out?
64. 64Thanking a friendGreetings, thanks and sorrysankyuu thanksdoumo arigatou thanks a lot; thank you very muchtasukatta that really helped; you saved mewarui ne sorry for the trouble; thanks, I owe youarigatou gozaimashita thank you (for what you did)
65. 65Saying sorryGreetings, thanks and sorrygomen gomen sorry, sorry (light)gomen nasai I'm sorrywatashi ga warukatta it was my fault; my badsuman sorry; my bad
66. 66Ending a hangoutGreetings, thanks and sorrykyou wa arigatou thanks for todaymata asobou ne let's hang out againki o tsukete kaette ne get home safetsuitara rain shite text me when you get homerain shite message me (on LINE); text me
67. 67Replying to thanksGreetings, thanks and sorryie ie no, no; not at allotagaisama da yo we're in the same boat; no need to thank metondemonai not at all (reply to thanks or praise); outrageousdouitashimashite you're welcome
68. 68What to call each otherGreetings, thanks and sorrynante yobeba ii? what should I call you?... tte yonde call me...tameguchi de ii yo you can talk casually with me