How to Say Yes and No in Japanese

Saying Yes

Pronounce the Japanese for "yes" like "hai", or "hi" (はい). The sound "ai" is like the I sound in "Price", "Time", and "File". So, the pronunciation of "yes" is "hai". In Japanese, each character makes a syllable sound and each syllable is pronounced the same length, unlike English. For example, "Op-por-tu-ni-ty" stretched the "tu" sound by just a little bit, while in Japanese "Op-por-tu-ni-ty" would have each syllable pronounced for the same amount of time. Screen Shot 2018 05 31 at 12.11.00 PM.png

Don't confuse it with similar words. In Japanese, totally different words could be pronounced the same. It's about context. For example, "hai" could mean "lung", and "hai" could mean "yes". But, if someone were to ask "Do you understand?" in Japanese, they would know you meant yes, and you weren't naming a part of the body. However, if someone were to ask "What body part allows oxygen to flow into the body?" in Japanese, they would know you meant lungs, and you weren't agreeing to the question.

Use "ee" (ええ) as a slightly less formal "yes". This is pronounced as a slightly elongated "eh". This is a slightly less formal way of saying "yes", though it's not considered colloquial or completely informal. For example, you could say it to a friend or younger person, but not to a stranger or your boss.

Say "un" (うん) for a more casual "yeah". The word うん, pronounced "oo-n", is a more colloquial way of saying yes, and is fairly similar to saying "yep" or "yeah" in English. Because of how casual it is, うん is more for use when chatting casually with friends; it should not be used when talking to a stranger or a higher-up, like a teacher. Don't confuse うん with ううん - うん means "yes", whereas ううん (oo-oon) means "no"!

Respond with "sou desu" (そうです) to confirm what someone said. Pronounced as "soh dess", そうです is often used as "yes, that's so" or "that's correct" in response to questions. For example, if someone asks you "学生ですか?" (Are you a student?), and you are, you could affirm that with "そうです". To be a bit more polite, add はい to the start of the response: はい、そうです (hi, soh dess). In more casual contexts, you can drop the です and just use そう (soh). そうですか (soh dess kah) is a question phrase that's similar to "Is that so?" in English. The more casual version is そうか (soh ka).

Saying No

Pronounce "no" like "iie" or "ee-eh" (いいえ). The sound "iie" is a sound distinct to Japanese. It starts with the "ee" sound in "Seed", "Deep", and "Sweet", and ends in the "eh" sound in "Enjoy", "Success", and "Egg". So, the pronunciation of "no" is "iie". Don't mix up いいえ with いえ - the word いえ means "house". いいえ elongates the "ee" sound, whereas いえ makes it fairly brief.

Don't confuse it with similar words. In Japanese, totally different words could be pronounced the same. It's about context. For example, "iie" could mean "why", and "iie" could mean "no". But, if someone were to ask "Do you know?" in Japanese, they would know you meant no, and you weren't asking you the same question. However, if someone were to ask "What's your password?" in Japanese, they would know you meant why, and you weren't disagreeing to the question. In Japanese, adding "Ka" to the end of a sentence makes it a question, not a statement. This makes it easier to distinguish "No" and "Why".

Use "iya" (いや) for a less-polite "no". Similar to ええ, the word いや (ee-yah) is a slightly less formal way of saying "no". You might use it when talking with a friend or friendly acquaintance, but not your doctor or a stranger.

Say "uun" (ううん) to colloquially say "nope". ううん (oo-oon) is much like うん in that it's more casual, so you would only use it when chatting with friends. Don't use it when having a more formal conversation, like with a stranger or policeman. Be sure to elongate the oo sound, or else it might sound like you're saying うん, which means "yep".

Respond with "chotto" (ちょっと) to politely turn something down. In Japanese culture, it's not seen as polite to directly reject something with いいえ or いや. However, if you say ちょっと (chyo-toh) and then trail off a bit, you're basically saying, "Sorry, but that's a little inconvenient" or "Sorry, but...". They'll understand you're turning them down. For example, if someone asks if you want to go to see a movie with them, you could respond with "ちょっと..." to turn them down.