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Yes and no

Stage 1Responses, reactions, fillers & social phrasesChunk 1 of 26 · items 1–3 of 484

The three ways to answer a yes/no question, which you do in almost every exchange. It's a closed set, so the block stays at three.

un

polite haidrama rank #49

yeah, uh-huh

うん はい

The casual yes, and also the 'uh-huh' you keep saying while someone talks to show you're following.

casual

un, iku yo.

Yeah, I'm going.

うん、行くよ。

polite

hai, ikimasu.

Yes, I'm going.

はい、行きます。

As a backchannel it shows you're listening, not that you agree; with superiors use hai (ee is the softer conversational polite yes). Trap: un confirms the statement, so to 'ikanai no?' (you're not going?) 'un' means 'right, I'm not going'.

Learn alongside: uun, iya

uun

polite iiedrama rank #593

no, nope

ううん いいえ

The casual no to a yes/no question: two beats with a dip in pitch, while a short un means yes.

casual

uun, ikanai yo.

Nope, I'm not going.

ううん、行かないよ。

polite

iie, ikimasen.

No, I'm not going.

いいえ、行きません。

A long, flat uun (うーん, #298) means 'hmm'. The romaji is the same but it sounds different. To 'ikanai no?', 'uun, iku yo' means 'no, I AM going'.

Learn alongside: un, iyaLearn first: un

iya

polite iiedrama rank #54

no, nah / well, no

いや いいえ

A firmer no than uun: it denies, corrects ('iya, chigau'), or opens a turn with 'well, actually'.

casual

iya, chigau yo. ashita da yo.

No, no, it's tomorrow.

いや、違うよ。明日だよ。

polite

iie, chigaimasu. ashita desu yo.

No, that's not right. It's tomorrow.

いいえ、違います。明日ですよ。

This is not the adjective iya 'unpleasant' (Versatile adjectives). In polite speech you mostly hear a short ie ('ie, daijoubu desu') or iya itself; full iie mostly answers a direct yes/no question.

Learn alongside: un, uun