Learn whether to use 'sumimasen' or 'gomennasai'
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| Hi everybody! Hiroko here. Welcome to Ask a Teacher where I’ll answer some of *your* most common Japanese questions. |
| The question for this lesson is… |
| Should I use SUMIMASEN or GOMENNASAI? |
| So when you want to apologise, you know the common phrase is ‘Gomennasai.’ However, you may also know that ‘Sumimasen’ means “I’m sorry.” as well. |
| So when should you use what? |
| It all depends on who you’re speaking to. |
| ‘Sumimasen’ is the more formal word. It comes from an expression, ‘sumanai’ meaning “words are not enough to apologise what I’ve done.” You can use this in business or a public space. Please note that people don’t usually use this with their family and friends. |
| By the way; When you want to express a sincere apology to your boss and clients, ‘Moshiwake arimasen.’ is commonly used. |
| You can use ‘Gomennasai,’ or ‘gomen’, with your family and friends. Please note that ‘gomennasai’ is not usually used in business occasions. ‘Gomen’ is even more casual. |
| So what do you say when you break a cup at a cafe and want to apologise to the waiter? Unless the waiter is one of your friends, you’d say… ‘Sumimasen. ’ because you want to show your apology but you see him/her in the public space. You could say ‘Gomennasai’ here but ‘sumimasen’ is more common. |
| One more example: |
| You’re running late for a meet-up with your friend. When you finally arrive, you would say ‘Okurete, gomennasai.’ meaning “Sorry, I’m late.” ‘Gomennasai’ is okay because you’re speaking towards your friend. You can say ‘sumimasen’ as well but it might sound too formal amongs friends. |
| I hope this makes sense to you and you’re able to use "Gomennasai” and “Sumimasen” correctly from now on! |
| Do you have any more questions? Leave them in the comments below and I’ll try to answer them! |
| またね！ |
Comments
HideWhat Japanese learning question do you have?
Steveさん
こんにちは！
コメントどうもありがとうございます。
おもしろい質問ですね😊
「悪い」can indeed be used in the same sense as すみません or ごめんなさい.
However, this usage is very casual and is primarily used when men talk to friends.
In anime, such casual conversations are often depicted, so you can often hear the expression「悪い」.
On the other hand, やばい is used to indicate undesirable or surprising situations.
Therefore,「悪い」and「やばい」are used in different situations.
Keep up the good work with your Japanese learning:)
Sincerely,
Miho
Team JapanesePod101.com
こんにちはジャパニーズパッド101ドットコム、
僕はアニメを見るには「悪い」と言うは「すみません／ごめんなさい」意味をできます。それは本当ですか？「やばい!」のことみたいですか？
In anime, I see that when "Warui" is said it can mean "I'm sorry." Is that true? Is that like "Yabai!"?
こんにちは、 Bryan-san!
はい、その通りです！(Hai, sono tōri desu! ""Yes, that's correct!"") In an office setting, you can use both ""すみません(Sumimasen)"" and ""申し訳ありません(Moushiwake arimasen)"". However, please remember that ""申し訳ありません(Moushiwake arimasen)"" is more formal and is usually used when you've made a significant mistake or want to apologize deeply. ""すみません(Sumimasen)"" is less formal and can be used for lighter situations, such as when you want to get someone's attention or apologize for a small mistake.
For example, if you accidentally bumped into your boss or coworkers, you can say ""すみません(Sumimasen)"". But if you made a big mistake on an important project, it would be more appropriate to say ""申し訳ありません(Moushiwake arimasen)"".
Keep practicing and don't hesitate to ask if you have more questions!👍
ありがとうございます！
Yoshimi
Team JapanesePod101.com
Hi Ryoma san
Thanks for the explanation. So in office setting, i can say either "sumimasen" or "moushiwake arimasen" to my boss and coworkers? 😅
こんにちは、Bryanさん！(Konnichiwa, Bryan-san! "Hello, Bryan!")
Indeed, expressing apologies in Japanese can be a bit tricky because there are different levels of politeness and formality.
But don't worry, you're doing great and it's all part of the learning process!
質問に答えますね。(Shitsumon ni kotaemasu ne. "I'll answer your question.") In Japanese, there are mainly three ways to say sorry:
1. ごめんなさい (Gomen nasai) - This is the most common way to say sorry. It's used in casual and semi-formal situations.
2. すみません (Sumimasen) - This can be used to say sorry, but it's also used to get someone's attention, like 'excuse me'.
3. 申し訳ありません (Moushiwake arimasen) - This is the most formal way to apologize and is often used in business settings.
Don't stress too much about it, Bryan-san. Keep practicing and you'll get the hang of it!
がんばってください！(Ganbatte kudasai! "Keep going!")
ありがとうございます！
Ryoma
Team JapanesePod101.com
omg apologising in Japanese is an art! so if i use the wrong sorry, i have to feel even more sorry for not being sorry enough 😵💫😵💫 ちょっと難しいですね。
Gaynorさん
コメントありがとうございます😄
We're so happy to hear that!!
Please let us know if you have any questions :)
Sincerely
りょうま（Ryoma）
Team JapanesePod101.com
うわあああ😄
Japanese just gets more and more interesting, 大好きです！！！👍😎
Hi Claudia,
Thank you for posting!
Yes, you might have heard people saying すみません and ごめんなさい.
We are glad to know that this lesson is helpful for you☺️
Thank you for learning Japanese with us:)
Sincerely,
Miho
Team JapanesePod101.com
ありいがとうございます。
This cleared up a lot for me. I was confused hearing some people using other words instead of すみません｡ When I address teachers and staff at Japanpod101 I shall just use すみません｡ because it’s customary to use this with teachers. On the other hand, with friends and peers I can use the other versions of sorry, excuse me, when I learn them.
Please feel free to correct any misspelling you find with my Kana.
ありいがとおございます。
Josueさん
コメントありがとうございます👍
You’re right. I’ve just reported this issue to my team so that they can fix it right away.
Thank you so much for letting us know and I’m sorry for the inconvenience.
Please let us know if you have any questions :)
Sincerely
Ryoma
Team JapanesePod101.com
Hello.
Hitoko-sensei's lessons and all Japanese101.com lessons are always fun and effective. I enjoy them a lot.
Please note that in both the video and the lesson transcript, there is a typo on the word "apologize" for it must be written with a "z".
I wish the best for this new year 2021.
Raulさん こんにちは。
コメントありがとうございます。ひろこさんの代わりにお返事しますね。
Thank you for your comment. I reply to you on behalf of her.
We are very glad to hear that you love our video lessons! ?
Your name seems to be ラウル（Rauru）from the spelling.
However, it would change depending on the actual pronunciation.
Stay tuned,
Motoko
Team JapanesePod101.com
Konnichiwa Alexey,
Thank you for asking us!
Yes you can use dōmo for sumimasen(and Arigatō). "dōmo gomennasai" is not common that much, but it's also acceptable. Or you can say “Hontō ni gomennasai” and of course “mōshiwake arimasen” which are really strong ways to show your feeling of apology to others who you do not know or business field or who is not a close friend of you.
Keep up the good study! Cheers,
Sono
Team JapanesePod101.com
Hello!
Since it is possible to use "domo sumimasen" to say "I am very sorry", is it possible to use "domo" with "gomennasai" to emphasize it?? Or it is grammatically incorrect and the appropriate phrase is "moshiwake arimasen/moushiwake gozaimasen"?
PS I am really enjoying your lessons and the whole website as well. Thank you!
Louie san,
Konnichiwa.
On behalf of Natsuko sensei, douitashimashit. You are welcome.
You can use ‘sumimasen’ from now on. ?
Yuki 由紀
Team JapanesePod101.com
Arigato gozaimasu Hiroko-san.
I always use "gomenasai", i thought it is more formal/ polite to use than "sumimasen".
こんにちわ 浩子さん
I'm from Brazil and becoming a huge fan of japanese101 work, thanks for all the lessons.
Raul do I introduce myself in japanese, I'm not sure about how my name will sound... Its pronounced as "haú or ハウ"
どおもありがとう
Hana Hana さん,
Konnichiwa.
I see.:smile:
I recommend you to use ‘sumimasen’ to people in higher positions or customers or people who you don’t know well.
However, you can use ‘gomennasai’ to your close friends.
Yuki 由紀
Team JapanesePod101.com
Domo arigatou Hiroko-san!
I used to think that "gomenasai" is more polite and "formal" or a bit sincere than "sumimasen" base from what I've seen from J-Drama.
So I thought okay I should use "gomenasai" when I feel really sorry for what I've done. But it's all clear to me now. ??