Study Resource: Japanese personal pronouns
Japanese first-person pronouns: "I" and "we"
In Japanese, there are variety of ways to say "I" and "we." We'll look at some forms from standard Japanese, some less alternative or less common forms, and some forms that are used only in particular dialects.
Standard Japanese
Here are the main first-person pronouns that are used in standard Japanese.
Politeness | Male Speaker | Female Speaker | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Plural Ending(s) | Singular | Plural Ending(s) | |
Polite (humble) | わたくし (私) watakushi | 〜たち[tachi]〜ども[domo] | わたくし (私) watakushi | 〜たち[tachi]〜ども[domo] |
Standard (semi-polite) | わたし (私) watashi | 〜たち[tachi]〜ども[domo] | わたし (私) watashi | 〜たち[tachi]〜ども[domo] |
Semi-casual | ぼく (僕) boku | 〜たち[tachi]〜ら[ra] | わたし (私) watashi | 〜たち[tachi]〜ども[domo] |
Casual | おれ (俺) ore | 〜たち[tachi]〜ら[ra] | あたし atashi | 〜たち[tachi]〜ら[ra] |
Alternative forms
Here are a few alternatives to the standard first-person pronouns in Japanese.
Politeness | Male Speaker | Female Speaker | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Plural Ending(s) | Singular | Plural Ending(s) | |
Semi-polite | 自分 jibun | 〜たち[tachi]〜ら[ra] | あたくし atakushi | 〜たち[tachi] |
Casual | おら ora | 〜たち[tachi] | うち uchi | 〜ら[ra] |
おいら oira | 〜たち[tachi] | あたい atai | 〜たち[tachi]〜ら[ra] | |
わし washi | 〜ら[ra] | |||
Humble | わたくしめ watakushime | |||
Writing (published) | 筆者 hissha | 〜ら[ra] | 筆者 hissha | 〜ら[ra] |
Writing (letters) | 小生 shōsei | 〜ら[ra] | ||
Humble (business) | 手前ども temae-domo | |||
Dialectal forms
Here are some first-person pronouns that are used in dialects of Japanese. The forms below are all singular, unless otherwise noted.
Region | Male Speaker | Female Speaker |
|---|---|---|
Hiroshima | わし[washi] | うち[uchi]わっち[wacchi] |
Kochi | あし[ashi] - casual | あっち[acchi]あて[ate]わたい[watai] |
Osaka/Kyoto | わて[wate]わし[washi]わい[wai] | うち[uchi]わて[wate]あて[ate] |
Hokkaido | わっち[wacchi] おらだ[orada](we) | わっちゃ[waccha] |
Kagoshima | おい[oi] - casual おいどん[oidon](we) - casual | |
あたんど[atando](we) | ||
Nagasaki | うったち[uttachi](we) | |
Okayama | わい[wai] | |
Nagasaki | わえ[wae](we)あがら[agara](we) | |
Japanese second-person pronouns: "you"
In Japanese, there are also variety of ways to say "you." Let's now look at some forms from standard Japanese, some less alternative or less common forms, and some forms that are used only in particular dialects.
Standard Japanese
Here are the main second-person pronouns that are used in standard Japanese.
Politeness | Male Speaker | Female Speaker | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Plural Ending(s) | Singular | Plural Ending(s) | |
Polite | ∅ | ∅ | ||
Standard (semi-polite) | あなた (貴方 / 貴女) anata | 〜がた[gata]〜たち[tachi] | あなた (貴方 / 貴女) anata | 〜がた[gata]〜たち[tachi] |
Casual (respectful) | きみ (君) kimi | 〜たち[tachi]〜ら[ra] | きみ (君) kimi → uncommon | 〜たち[tachi]〜ら[ra] |
Casual (less respectful) | おまえ (御前) omae | 〜たち[tachi]〜ら[ra] | あんた anta | 〜たち[tachi]〜ら[ra] |
あんた anta | 〜たち[tachi]〜ら[ra] | |||
Casual (rough, disrespectful) | てめえ temē | 〜ら[ra] | ||
きさま (貴様) kisama | 〜ら[ra] | |||
Alternative forms
Here are a few alternatives to the standard second-person pronouns in Japanese.
Politeness | Male Speaker | Female Speaker | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Plural Ending(s) | Singular | Plural Ending(s) | |
Semi-casual | おたく otaku | 〜ら[ra] | ||
Casual | 自分 jibun | 〜たち[tachi]〜ら[ra] | ||
Dialectal forms
Here are some second-person pronouns that are used in dialects of Japanese. The forms below are all singular, unless otherwise noted.
Region | Second-person pronouns | |
|---|---|---|
Yamagata | おめさん[ome san] にさ[nisa] - casual, male | |
Kyoto | あて[ate]われ[ware] | |
Wakayama | おみら[omira] - plural | |
Hiroshima | われ[ware] | |
Okayama | じぶん[jibun] | |
Kōchi | おまはん[omahan]おまん[oman] | |
Nagasaki | あーた[āta] わい[wai] - casual | |
Kagoshima | おまんさー[omansā] わい[wai] - casual | |
