Main dialogue: one section manager, two ways of speaking
Chen has worked in the sales department of 「さくら商事」 for six months. This afternoon her boss, Takahashi, the section manager (kachō), is visiting the client 「ひかり電機」. After he leaves, Mr Yamada from another client, 「みどり食品」, phones to speak to him.
- 高橋課長
チェンさん、これからひかり電機さんに行ってくるよ。四時には戻るから。
Chen, I’m off to Hikari Denki now. I’ll be back by four.
- チェン
承知しました。課長、見積もりの資料はもうお持ちになりましたか。
Certainly. Kachō, have you got the papers for the quote?
- 高橋課長
うん、ちゃんと持ったよ。じゃ、あとはよろしく。
Yes, I’ve got them. I’ll leave things here to you, then.
- チェン
はい、さくら商事営業部でございます。
(The phone rings.) Hello, Sakura Shōji sales department.
- 山田
お世話になっております。みどり食品の山田と申しますが、高橋課長はいらっしゃいますか。
Thank you for your help as always. This is Yamada from Midori Shokuhin. Is Mr Takahashi, the kachō, there?
- チェン
いつもお世話になっております。申し訳ございません。高橋は外出しておりまして、四時ごろ戻る予定です。
Thank you for your help as always. I’m very sorry, Takahashi is out. He should be back at about four.
- 山田
そうですか。では、四時過ぎにまたお電話します。
I see. I’ll call again after four, then.
- チェン
恐れ入ります。山田様からお電話があったことを、高橋に申し伝えます。
Thank you. I’ll tell Takahashi that you called, Mr Yamada.
- 高橋課長
ただいま。
(The kachō comes back.) I’m back.
- チェン
お帰りなさい。課長、みどり食品の山田様からお電話がありました。四時過ぎにまたお電話くださるそうです。
Welcome back. Kachō, Mr Yamada from Midori Shokuhin called. He said he’d call again after four.
- 高橋課長
そう、わかった。ありがとう。
Right, got it. Thanks.
It is the same Takahashi, but when Chen speaks to him directly she raises him with the respectful 「お持ちになりましたか」. When she mentions him to Yamada, an outsider, she says only 「高橋」: no 「さん」, no 「課長」, and his action takes the humble 「外出しております」. Passing the message on to him is her own action, so that is humble too: 「申し伝えます」. When he comes back, Chen relays Yamada’s words. Yamada is a client, so she says 「山田様」 and uses the respectful 「お電話くださる」 for his action. The kachō talks to Chen in plain style, as a boss does to a junior; Chen still answers with 「です」 and 「ます」.
Tip
This lesson only asks which kind of keigo is used and whom it raises. The forms are covered in this course: respectful language in lesson 2, humble language in lesson 3, polite and beautifying language in lesson 4. For now, treat the forms here as set phrases. N4 lesson 31 introduced the three kinds of keigo and the common special verbs; this lesson goes further. The full phone routine is in lesson 6.
Four kinds of keigo: whom they raise, whom they respect
Keigo falls into four kinds, depending on whom it works on. Respectful and humble language change the action itself, so first look at who does the action. Polite and beautifying language have nothing to do with who acts.
| Kind | What it does | Example | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Respectful (sonkeigo) | raises the person who acts | ひかり電機の森様がいらっしゃいました。 | for actions of the listener or people on their side |
| Humble (kenjōgo) | lowers the person who acts, and so raises the person the action is aimed at | 森様に見本をお届けします。 | for things you or your side do for, or towards, the other person |
| Polite (teineigo) | is courteous to the listener | 会議室は三階でございます。 | 「です」, 「ます」, 「ございます」; nothing to do with who acts |
| Beautifying (bikago) | makes the words themselves refined | お茶、ご飯、お手洗い | raises no one; it just sounds nicer |
Respectful and humble language form one layer; polite language is another. Decide them separately. The first layer asks whose action it is, which decides respectful, humble or neither. The second asks who is listening, which decides whether the sentence ends in 「です」 or 「ます」. The two layers combine freely. For example, “the kachō has already gone out”:
| Phrase | Layer 1: who acts | Layer 2: who listens |
|---|---|---|
| 課長はもう出かけたよ。 | no keigo | plain style: to a close colleague |
| 課長はもう出かけました。 | no keigo | polite: to an ordinary colleague, someone from another department |
| 課長はもうお出かけになったよ。 | respectful: raises the kachō | plain style: to a close colleague |
| 課長はもうお出かけになりました。 | respectful: raises the kachō | polite: to a boss, someone from another department |
Compare
Polite language can’t replace respectful languageAdding 「です」 or 「ます」 is courtesy to the listener; it does not raise the person who acts. Saying 「森様も明日の会議に来ますか」 to a client is grammatical, but the client’s action has no respectful form, so it doesn’t sound formal enough. 「明日の会議にはいらっしゃいますか」 is better. On the other hand, you don’t need to turn every verb into keigo; one or two in a sentence sounds natural.
Compare
English shows politeness with phrases like could you or would you mind, and the verb stays the same. Japanese keigo changes the word itself: for “go”, you say 「いらっしゃる」 about the other person, and 「参る」 or 「伺う」 about yourself. Making a sentence softer without changing the words is not enough in formal settings.
First ask who acts, then who listens
When you meet an action, think in this order and you are less likely to go wrong.
- (1) Who does the action? If the listener or someone on their side, use respectful language. If you or someone on your side does it for or towards the other person, use humble language. If it has nothing to do with the other person, don’t change the verb.
- (2) Is the person acting on “this side” or “that side”, from the listener’s point of view? When you speak to people outside the company, everyone in your company is on “this side”.
- (3) Who are you talking to? To a boss, a client or someone you don’t know well, end with 「です」 or 「ます」. To a close colleague or a friend, plain style is fine.
森様は、新しいカタログをもうご覧になりました。
Mr Mori has already looked at the new catalogue.
Mori is a client and he is the one looking: respectful.
明日、森様に新しいカタログをお送りします。
Tomorrow I will send the new catalogue to Mr Mori.
You send it, to a client: humble.
昼ご飯は、いつも会社の近くの店で食べています。
I usually have lunch at a place near the office.
Your own business, nothing to do with the listener: no special verb; polite language is enough.
課長、ひかり電機の森様がいらっしゃいました。
Kachō, Mr Mori from Hikari Denki has arrived.
A client’s action, told to your boss: the client is an outsider, so use respectful language.
Watch out
Humble language needs someone to raiseHumble language is not simply “for talking about yourself”. 「お〜する」 and 「伺う」 have a direction: done for someone, going to someone, saying something to someone. For something you do on your own that doesn’t involve the listener, polite language is enough: say 「毎朝、駅まで歩きます」, not 「お歩きします」. However, 「おる」, 「いたす」, 「参る」 and 「申す」 have another use that simply shows formality to the listener, as in 「駅から歩いて参りました」 (I walked here from the station). Lesson 3 of this course covers this in detail.
Inside and outside: mentioning your own people to outsiders
In keigo, “your side” isn’t fixed; it depends on who is listening. Japanese calls this 「内」 (inside) and 「外」 (outside). Inside the company, the kachō and the department manager (buchō) are your superiors, so their actions take respectful language. But as soon as you speak to someone from outside, the whole company is “inside”: the kachō and buchō stand on your side, and you lower them.
| Listener | Example | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| the kachō himself | 課長、明日は何時ごろ出社されますか。 | call him by his title; respectful verbs (「〜される」, lesson 2) |
| colleagues in the company | 高橋課長は、明日十時に出社されるそうです。 | title after the surname, as a form of address; respectful verbs too |
| people outside the company | 課長の高橋は、明日十時に出社いたします。 | surname only, title in front; humble verbs |
When you mention someone from your own company to outsiders, give only the surname: 「高橋」. To give the title, put it first: 「課長の高橋」, not 「高橋課長」, and no 「さん」. If you don’t give a name, say 「担当の者」 (the person in charge).
| Wrong | Right | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 高橋課長は、ただいま会議中です。 | 高橋は、ただいま会議中でございます。 | a title after the surname is a form of address; don’t use it with outsiders |
| 高橋さんがそうおっしゃっていました。 | 高橋がそのように申しておりました。 | no 「さん」; change 「おっしゃる」 to the humble 「申す」 |
| 中村部長がご説明なさいます。 | 部長の中村がご説明いたします。 | 「なさる」 raises your own side; change it to 「いたす」 |
| 課長がそちらに伺われます。 | 課長の高橋がそちらに伺います。 | 「伺う」 is humble; adding 「〜れる」 makes it respectful, mixing two directions |
| 高橋課長は、今週いっぱいご出張です。 | 高橋は、今週いっぱい出張しております。 | no 「ご」 for your own side’s matters |
Culture
Family has an inside and outside tooWhen you talk about your own family to outsiders, use the “inside” words: 「父」, 「母」, 「妻」, not 「お父さん」 or 「お母さん」. Only the other person’s family gets 「お父様」 or 「奥様」. At home, of course, you can call your parents 「お父さん」 and 「お母さん」.
Tip
Inside the companyInside the company, if you talk about the kachō to the buchō, the kachō is still your superior. It is generally thought fine to use respectful language for the kachō here: 「高橋課長は、三時ごろ戻られるそうです」. Some companies and senior staff expect you to lower the kachō a little in front of a higher boss; the rules vary from company to company, so following the people around you is safest. With people outside the company, always treat your own company’s people as “inside”.
Compare
In English you might say our manager, Mr Takahashi. To outsiders, Japanese says only 「課長の高橋」, with no 「さん」. This is the opposite of the English habit of using Mr even for your own colleagues.
How much keigo to use
More keigo is not always better. Piling respectful and humble forms into one sentence sounds stiff and distant. At work, most sentences only need 「です」 and 「ます」; save respectful and humble language for the key places: the other person’s actions, what you do for them, and your own company’s people when you speak to outsiders.
| Situation | Usual style |
|---|---|
| chatting with a close colleague | plain style or polite language |
| with a boss or senior colleague | polite language; respectful for the boss’s actions, humble for what you do for the boss |
| with clients and outsiders | polite + respectful + humble; your own company counts as “inside” |
| answering the phone, receiving visitors | as above, plus more set phrases like 「ございます」 and 「かしこまりました」 |
Culture
Your boss uses plain style; you use keigoBosses often use plain style with juniors, like 「行ってくるよ」 and 「わかった」 in the main dialogue. That is how seniors speak to juniors; the junior still answers with 「です」, 「ます」 and keigo. A close senior colleague may say 「敬語じゃなくていいよ」, and then you can relax a little, but in front of clients, switch back to keigo.
Watch out
Too much keigo sounds unnatural tooStacking several layers of keigo on something small, as in 「ご確認させていただきたく存じます」, is fairly common in emails, but said face to face it sounds roundabout, and many people find it excessive. Face to face, 「確認いたします」 is enough. Lesson 5 of this course covers which stacks count as mistakes.