Shrugging it off
Conversation phrases, Stage 2chunk 14 of 71What do you think
Let a point go or play something down.
- maa ii kaoh well; never mind
- taishita koto naiit's no big deal; nothing serious
- sou iu monthat's just how it is
- saawell, who knows; come on, let's go
Mix-ups saa can mean 'who knows' or 'come on, let's go'.
maa ii ka
oh well; never mind
Self-talk as you decide to let something go.
densha itchatta. maa ii ka, tsugi matou.
Missed the train. Oh well, I'll wait for the next one.
電車行っちゃった。まあいいか、次待とう。
Written まあいいかWho you say itHeard 28× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitles
taishita koto nai
polite taishita koto arimasen
it's no big deal; nothing serious
Plays down a problem, an injury, or praise.
About someone else's work it's a put-down: 'not that impressive'.
kega? taishita koto nai yo.
The injury? It's nothing serious.
けが？大したことないよ。
taishita koto arimasen yo. daijoubu desu.
It's nothing serious. I'm fine.
大したことありませんよ。大丈夫です。
Written 大したことない · たいしたことない · 大したことありませんWho you say it and hear itHeard 95× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitles
sou iu mon
polite sou iu mono desu
that's just how it is
Accept or explain something you can't change, often as sou iu mon da yo.
mon is a casual squeeze of mono (thing).
shigoto nante, sou iu mon da yo.
That's just how work is.
仕事なんて、そういうもんだよ。
shigoto wa, sou iu mono desu yo.
That's just how work is.
仕事は、そういうものですよ。
Written そういうもん · そういうものですWho you say it and hear itHeard 34× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitles
saa
well, who knows; come on, let's go
With a shrug it dodges a question you can't answer; said briskly it gets people moving.
A bare saa can sound dismissive; add chotto wakaranai to soften it.
saa, doko itta n darou. shiranai.
Who knows where he went. No idea.
さあ、どこ行ったんだろう。知らない。
saa, chotto wakarimasen ne.
Hmm, I'm not really sure.
さあ、ちょっとわかりませんね。
Written さあWho you say it and hear itHeard too rare in film subtitles to count