29
votes
Accepted
Should I use the formal form (~ます) on the buttons of an app?
I'm actually a developer working for a Japanese programming company.
It might depend on some people, but as far as buttons go.
「保存」、「登録」、「完了」、「キャンセル」
etc. seems like the way to go. Of course ...
- 5,731
12
votes
Accepted
When to use である vs であります?
である is formal, but not polite
であります is formal and polite, but not humble
でございます is formal and polite and humble
だ is informal, but not polite
です is informal-* and polite
*- compared to である
A ...
- 7,431
11
votes
Should I use the formal form (~ます) on the buttons of an app?
Please check Microsoft's Japanese Style Guide (for UI), in particular the Style section on Page 46.
Style
Use Desu-masu (ですます調, polite style), Dearu (である調, plain style)
and noun phrase (体言止め) ...
- 6,613
11
votes
How would you refer to a married couple if you were familiar with both prior to marriage?
IMO, starting to use his/her given name suddenly is usually an inconsiderate option. (It's fine during their wedding ceremony, though.) You can just use 奥さん or 旦那さん if you are in front of them. In ...
- 331k
11
votes
Do Japanese people use formal or informal language for internal monologues?
I thought your question was a bit vague. Do you mean to ask if Japanese people use 敬語/polite form when talking among themselves? Or are you asking if they think and talk to themselves in 敬語?
Most of ...
- 11.5k
9
votes
How formal is 唯一?
唯一 is relatively rarer and more difficult than しか～ない or ～だけ, and it's not a word kindergartners are likely to use. But once you've become a teenager, it can be safely used both in formal and casual ...
- 331k
7
votes
How do Japanese speakers transition from polite to plain form amongst friends?
Shifting from polite speech to casual speech is usually a gradual and implicit process when a mature adult makes friends with someone. Depending on the situation, it may take months or even years to ...
- 331k
7
votes
Are 漢語 always more formal than 和語？
While 漢語 is more formal/technical/academic than the 和語 equivalent in most cases, there are a few exceptions.
一番 (kango) is less formal/academic than 最も (wago).
喧嘩 (kango) is less formal than 争い (wago)...
- 331k
7
votes
Accepted
When to use おなかすいた and when to use はらへった?
To me, "お腹が空いた" sounds normal and polite as compared with "腹が減った," which sounds informal and sometimes vulgar, depending on the situation.
When you are taking a walk with your friend in downtown, ...
- 9,555
7
votes
つもり vs Simple Future
週末にたけしさんとテニスをします is an affirmation that you are going to play tennis on the weekend. It is definite. Note that there is no such thing as a future tense or an auxiliary verb that would correspond to ...
- 21.7k
6
votes
今(temporal counter) vs. 本(temporal counter)
本週 does not exist in the first place. BCCWJ returned virtually zero result, and there is no dictionary entry for 本週.
本月 is very rare. Most examples in BCCWJ are either from legal documents or quotes ...
- 331k
6
votes
Accepted
Is honorific speech ever used in the first person?
In ancient Japanese, honorific verbs was used by very noble people to refer to their own actions (自尊敬語, "self-honorifics"). But you won't see this unless you learn archaic Japanese seriously. In ...
- 331k
5
votes
Accepted
formality of ちゃう・じゃう
I think they actually said 始めちゃいます using 始める (transitive).
～ちゃう is always colloquial and relatively informal, but usually not impolite. It's inappropriate to use ～ちゃう in formal greetings and business ...
- 331k
5
votes
Accepted
When does omission of です constitute casual speech?
I think じゃあ、早稲田まで isn't polite but plain. じゃあ、早稲田まで行ってください and じゃあ、早稲田までお願いします would be polite.
Sentences without です, ます aren't polite, so the sentences that end with particles like 早稲田まで, ほしいから, and ...
- 24.3k
5
votes
Accepted
How is this unnecessarily informal?
Often a shorter version sounds stiffer or more literary/academic/technical.
Masu-stem is stiffer than te-form to join clauses
だ before ～と見なす, ～とする is usually not said in legal sentences
AなどB is ...
- 331k
5
votes
What's the ultra-polite way to invite someone to do something?
There should be various ways to say what you want to say, but in the situation you mention, I would say "英語に関することで私にお役に立てることがありましたら、いつでもおっしゃってください". It is not super-super polite, but this level is ...
- 61
5
votes
Accepted
What are simple "No" responses?
You're absolutely right about いいえ not being used as "no" in most cases. I can't recall the last time I heard a native speaker actually use it. Here are some of the most common ways I've heard the ...
- 86
5
votes
Do Japanese people use formal or informal language for internal monologues?
Hard to say... until age 18 or so you'll use a lot of informal language because you have a lot of peers around (though if you are in a sports club the situation might be different). Depending on where ...
- 16.7k
5
votes
What do Japanese people think if I only use formal forms when speaking Japanese?
If you are an adult businessperson and speak Japanese only with non-family members, you should have no problem in most cases. People around you may not even notice you don't (or can't) use casual ...
- 331k
4
votes
Should I use the formal form (~ます) on the buttons of an app?
(I have Programming experience) You should not use 保存します.
Because
In general, Using 保存 or 保存する in Japan.
For example, Look at the picture. This is a Twitter(Android)'s window.
It is written 保存. ......
- 1,494
4
votes
Accepted
How to introduce oneself in relation to ones husband?
口頭でしたら、
（はじめまして。+）
「妻の花子です。/ 太郎の妻です。/ 山田の妻です。」
「家内の花子です。/ 太郎の家内です。/ 山田の家内です。」
（+（いつも）主人がお世話になっております。）
のように言えると思います。（「家内」を使うのは正しくない、という人もいますが、実際には結構使われています。）でも、
「山田です。（いつも）主人がお世話になっております。...
- 66.3k
4
votes
Accepted
Which is more polite, ではまた or じゃまた?
When expressions are shortened, they are usually considered less formal and thus sound less polite. This applies to では vs. じゃ: じゃ is less formal and thus sounds less polite (but can sound more ...
- 386
4
votes
What instances would you use someone's full name?
This typically happens when you have two or more people with the same surname in your organization and they cannot be distinguished even with the suffixes such as -さん, -先輩, -課長 and -先生. If there are ...
- 331k
4
votes
Accepted
Usage of 次第 with informal language (やる)
I guess 今やっている作業が終われば is acceptable, but the whole sentence with 終わり次第 is more natural as an order in office.
Yet another possibility is use of たら. To me,
今やっている作業が終わったら、山口君の方を手伝ってやってくれ。
is ...
- 37.6k
4
votes
〜と考えている at the end of a sentence
From an English perspective, ～たいと考えています may seem redundant, but this is perfectly natural in Japanese. ～たいです or ～欲しいです are actually unrefined sentence endings, and they are usually avoided in proper ...
- 331k
4
votes
Accepted
敬語 in Informal Situation
Generally speaking, this typically happens (almost unconsciously) when the speaker wants their statement to sound more formal, important, official, serious, dignified, and so on. For example, when:
...
- 331k
3
votes
Which is more formal/polite: 大いに or ずいぶん?
What is formal in your mind?
Suppose the meeting room is a mess and you want to have it clean. The following is the e-mail message from you to a person in the General Affairs Department.
"...
- 2,906
3
votes
How do I ask someone to limit the scope of their questions?
"Could you please limit (the scope of) your questions to * examples of questions relevant to their tour *?"
How about...
ご質問は、(examples of questions) (など)といったものに｛[限]{かぎ}らせて / [限定]{げんてい}させて｝｛...
- 66.3k
3
votes
Accepted
What is the difference between formal and polite verb forms?
By "formal" they seem to have meant "literary", "solemn", "lofty" and such things, while "polite" seems more about social courtesy. In this sense:
"Formal" or not: get vs obtain; job vs profession; ...
- 52.3k
3
votes
"Please let me know if you have any questions" in japanese
My ordinary template is:
ご不明な点が(a)ありましたら(b)ご連絡ください(c)。
For the (a) part:
ご質問が
（何か）わからない（点／ところ）が
お気づきの点が (~ "if there is something")
will also do, but I prefer my choice above being terse ...
- 52.3k
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