ビジネス日本語. The use of Japanese in the workplace.
Applies to any question asking about proper phrases, formality, or customs when communicating with coworkers, supervisors, customers, or other people while at work.
Questions tagged [business-japanese]
112 questions
30
votes
4 answers
When is it appropriate to use お疲れ様 (otsukaresama)?
I know the general meaning of using お疲れ様です／でした to express gratitude for some work, but I'm a bit fuzzy about appropriate times to use it.
I know it is a common saying when leaving for the day, and I've also seen it in email when replying to someone…
Troyen
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19
votes
1 answer
How do I politely ask my boss for a moment of his time?
My boss is a native Japanese speaker.
In English, when I have a question or an issue to bring up, I can ask "Do you have a minute?" to see if it is an appropriate time to interrupt them. In Japanese, when I tried the literal translation…
Troyen
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19
votes
5 answers
What is the correct usage of 承知しました, 了解です and かしこまりました, the more formal forms of 分かる?
At work, it is wrong to simply say 分かる to say that you understand something. In what situation should I opt to use one of the previously mentioned forms?
wallyqs
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17
votes
2 answers
How to say: "I am returning your call"
Title says it all!
If somebody called and left a message, when calling them back, is there a set expression for that?
I generally just use "さっきにお電話頂いた...", but wondering if there is a more idiomatic way to say this.
(this happens a lot more in a…
Dave
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16
votes
2 answers
How should I start an email when requesting something from someone I don't know well?
In English, there is a certain etiquette to follow when writing a business letter. From what I've seen so far, the same seems to be true in Japanese as well.
If I was making a business-related request to someone who has helped me a lot in the past,…
Troyen
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15
votes
4 answers
How would I respectfully disagree with a superior?
If my manager says something that I know to be factually incorrect, how can I point that out without sounding disrespectful? (Is ~違います appropriate in this context or is that too strong?)
Is this a situation where I would use speech that is more…
Troyen
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14
votes
1 answer
At work, when is it not ok to finish an email with どうぞよろしくお願いします?
Whenever I communicate with my Japanese coworkers, I always finish my emails with どうぞよろしくお願いします。I guess in the context of an email in English it could be akin to saying "Cheers" "Regards", so I unless I write どうぞよろしくお願いします, I will be worrying that I…
wallyqs
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14
votes
1 answer
If my business card says 〇〇さん, does that mean I'm referring to myself with an honourific?
My company (a Japanese startup) issued me a set of business cards. The information on the card is almost entirely in English. Except for the company address, the only other bit in Japanese is「ムルさん」in small font beneath my English name.
When I was…
muru
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13
votes
3 answers
Business Japanese: what's the proper way to say "please visit [this URL]"?
I'm writing a business e-mail to a Japanese speaking person, and I need to direct them to a certain URL. In English I would write "please visit http://www.example.com". I'm not sure the best way to say that in Japanese. My best guess is something…
Joshua Carmody
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12
votes
2 answers
usage of「ご迷惑をおかけ・・・」variants for a business apology
I have to apologize for a procedural error at work, and am unsure about selecting the right form of apology from the variants of 「ご迷惑をおかけ・・・」:
1.「ご迷惑【めいわく】をおかけして申【もう】し訳【わけ】ございません。」
2.「ご迷惑【めいわく】をおかけして申【もう】し訳【わけ】ありません。」
3.「ご迷惑【めいわく】をおかけしてすみません。」
Also,…
Mason
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12
votes
3 answers
What are common mistakes made by Japanese kombini employees speaking "manual keigo" (バイト敬語)
Mainly inspired by this question on what seems to be the misuse of a standard idiom by a Japanese employee, I was reminded of being told about バイト敬{けい}語{ご} ("manual keigo") in the past: a slightly dumbed-down sonkeigo crash course handed to new…
Dave
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11
votes
2 answers
Ways to end a phone conversation
Despite its being one of the most basic element of daily-life Japanese, I often find myself looking for a proper way to end certain phone conversations.
Of course, I know the standard: [それでは]失礼します, or: よろしく[お願いします]...
But somehow, neither of these…
Dave
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11
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2 answers
Should I use keigo in this situation:
I work in an American subsidiary of a Japanese company. I met a few Japanese colleagues while working at the home office on an exchange. Do I need to use Keigo for:
Colleague A: 1 year younger in age than me and joined the company at a later time.…
pingish
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10
votes
7 answers
IT system renewal: Can I say 更新 for "renewal"?
I am starting a new project and have to come up with a name for it so that everybody knows what we are talking about.
The project is the renewal of an IT application that I will call エックスワイゼッド. Improving the existing software and adding a few…
Nicolas Raoul
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10
votes
2 answers
How to answer someone else's phone?
I am in a Japanese office setup sitting next to my boss. He often gets phone calls but most of the time he is not in his seat. How do I answer his phone say that "This is Mr. XX's seat and this is YY (my name) talking and Mr.XX is not in his place"…
Venkatesh Kumar
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