尊敬語 – How to Speak Respectfully in Japanese
Japanese has 3 main style of polite language; Humble, general polite language, and respectful language. Respectful language is known as 尊敬語. If you learn Japanese you will soon find out how the way you speak can change quite a bit depending on who you are talking to.
INDEX
When do you use 尊敬語
Basically, you will use 尊敬語 when you are talking to someone who is superior or of higher status. That could be a teacher, older person, boss and so on.
https://japaneseuniverse.com/2024/02/18/pac-man-in-japaneseconcepts-behind-development-to-global-icon/How is Respectful different from Polite?
Respectful language is not the same as just polite language. You can think of 尊敬語 as a subset of polite language.
So, polite would just means keeping a level of social distance, (not in the physical sense) from you and the other person. So, if you are speaking with strangers or people you are not familier with you would use polite language.
Respectful language also has that distancing function but also actually adds a level of respect by elevating the other person above you.
How do I use 尊敬語
Anytime you talk about some action, thing, condition, people and so one related to someone you would use 尊敬語. More specifically if you have a sentence where the person you are respecting is the subject you would use 尊敬語. This is accomplished by using special honorific words or word forms.
Honorific Verbs
Primarily you show respect to someone by picking an honorific verb or verb form. Nouns and adjectives are important but understanding how to use verbs will teach you most of what you need to know.
Special verbs
Some common examples of honorific verbs and there common verb form are:
Honorific ← Common
いらっしゃる ← いる、来る、行く
to be somewhere, come, go
なさる ← する
下さる ← くれる
to give
Special verbs forms
If there is not a special verb then verbs may use a different verb form:
Honorific ← Common
お読みになる ← 読む
読まれる ← 読まれる
Nouns and Adjectives
You can also show respect by adding お or ご to the beginning of certain nouns and adjectives:
お名前
name
お忙しい
busy
ご立派な
splendid, fine
