Hi, there! It’s Saori. Today, I’d like to share some useful Japanese expressions to ask directions in Japanese.
Don’t Japanese speak English or foreign languages??
Unfortunately, many Japanese don’t speak English. I have many friends around the world and many of them have traveled Japan, or have had some language problems with Japanese people.
If you try to speak to Japanese in English starting, “Excuse me, …”, I suppose some or many Japanese reply like this; “Sorry, I can’t speak English.”Japan is a very modern and developed country, but we, Japanese, are still afraid of speaking English. So talking to people in Japanese will help you a lot, I hope.
1, Sumimasen. ( Excuse me.)
This sentence,”sumimasen”（すみません） is a very useful one for you. It means “Excuse me”, and you can use it when you want to speak to someone, to apologize, and to thank someone, too.
2, XXX wa doko desuka? ( Where is XXX?)
When you get attention from a person with “sumimasen”, the next step is to ask directions. The structure of this sentence is like this:
XXX wa doko desuka? （XXXはどこですか？）
XXX is where ( to show respect)?
Remember, “doko” means “where”.
3, Mou ichido itte kudasai. ( Could you say it again, please?)
It’s not impolite to say this. Don’t be shy and ask them.
Mou ichido itte kudasai. （もう一度言ってください）
Again once say please.
4, Yukkuri itte kudasai. ( Say it slowly, please.)
One study showed that Japanese is the fastest spoken language in the world. So it’s very natural if you don’t get any when listen to Japanese. I believe many of the people will repeat slowly.
Yukkuri itte kudasai. （ゆっくり言ってください）
Slowly say please.
5, Arigatou gozai masu. ( Thank you.)
“Arigatou gozai masu”（ありがとうございます）is the most common expression to say “thank you”. I don’t write a lot in this article, but “gozai masu” is present tense. If you want to thank someone about something in the past, you can say “arigatou gozai mashita”（ありがとうございました）.
Expressions in answers
When I traveled around Latin America and South America, the most challenging part to ask directions was to understand the answer to my question. So I’ll note some essential words/ phrases below.
6, Massugu iku/ susumu. (Go straight)
Japanese has varieties of expressions to say one thing. In this case, “iku” and “susumu” are the same.
Massugu iku / susumu. （まっすぐ行く／進む）
Straight go.
7, Migi / Hidari ni magaru. (Turn right / left.)
Migi / Hidari ni magaru. （右／左に曲がる）
Right / Left to turn.
8, Michi / Shingou wo wataru. ( Cross the street / traffic light.)
Michi / Shingou wo wataru. （道／信号を渡る）
Street / Traffic light cross.
These are very basic ones but I’m sure they’ll help your travel! Practice repeatedly, and you’ll get them!
