Japanese greetings change depending on the time of day.
In this lesson, you will learn the three basic Japanese greetings:
- Ohayougozaimasu (おはようございます)
- Konnichiwa (こんにちは)
- Konbanwa (こんばんは)
This guide explains when to use them, how they sound, and how native speakers actually use them in real life. This lesson note is designed to go with the podcast below⬇︎
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What Are the 3 Basic Japanese Greetings?
There are three main greetings in Japanese:
・Morning: Ohayou gozaimasu
・Daytime: Konnichiwa
・Evening: Konbanwa
Japanese people use these greetings in this order of frequency:
Ohayou gozaimasu → Konnichiwa → Konbanwa
Ohayou is used the most in daily life, especially at work.
Ohayou gozaimasu (Good Morning)
Ohayou gozaimasu is a Japanese greeting used in the morning, usually from around 5:00 AM to about 10:00 or 10:30 AM.
Pronunciation and Mora
O ha yo u go za i ma su (9 mora)
お
は
よ
う
ご
ざ
い
ま
す
In Japanese, each sound unit is called a mora.
Long vowels also count as one mora.
Important point:
Do not skip the “u” sound in “yo u”.
Common mistake:
・O ha yo go za i ma su ❌
Correct:
・O ha yo u go za i ma su ✔
The “u” in “you” must be clearly pronounced.
Casual and Polite Forms
Japanese greetings change depending on the level of politeness.
・Oha → very casual (used between close friends, often in messages or SNS)
・Ohayoo / Ohayou → casual (friends, family)
・Ohayou gozaimasu → polite (work, formal situations)
In daily life, the polite form “Ohayou gozaimasu” is used very often, especially in work environments.
Special Usage in Work Situations
Important point:
In Japanese workplaces, people sometimes say
“Ohayou gozaimasu” even at night.
Why?
・It is the first greeting of the day
・It marks the start of work
For example:
You start work at 6 PM in a restaurant.
When you arrive and meet your coworkers, you say:
Ohayou gozaimasu.
This does not mean “good morning” in a literal sense.
It means “hello, we start work now” or “this is our first greeting today.”
Common Expressions Used Together
Ohayou gozaimasu is often followed by other expressions in work situations.
Examples:
・Ohayou gozaimasu. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu.
・Ohayou gozaimasu. Kyou mo yoroshiku onegaishimasu.
These expressions show politeness and cooperation.
They are very common in Japanese work culture.
Kanji and Origin
Ohayou gozaimasu is usually written in hiragana:
おはようございます
But it can also be written with kanji:
お早うございます
Here, the kanji 早 means “early.”
In the past, this expression originally meant:
“You are early.”
“You came early.”
Over time, it became a fixed greeting used in the morning.
Konnichiwa (Hello / Good Afternoon)
Konnichiwa is a Japanese greeting used during the day, usually from around 10:00 or 10:30 AM to about 4:00 or 5:00 PM.
Pronunciation and Mora
Ko n ni chi wa (5 mora)
こ
ん
に
ち
は
In Japanese, each sound unit is called a mora.
Important point:
The last “ha” is written as は, but it is pronounced “wa”.
Correct:
こんにちは (ha)
Pronunciation:
こんにちわ (wa)
Do not write it as こんにちわ. That is incorrect.
Why does this happen?
This comes from Japanese history.
Konnichiwa was originally part of a longer sentence.
In the Edo period, people said things like:
・Kyou wa gokigen ikaga desu ka
・Kyou wa ii tenki desu ne
These mean:
・How are you today?
・Nice weather today, right?
Over time, only the first part remained:
Konnici wa (今日は) → Konniciwa
This expression is made of:
・Kyou (today) → noun
・wa (は) → particle
In Japanese, the particle は is pronounced “wa”.
That is why we write:
こんにちは
Even though we say “wa”.
Important nuance
Konnichiwa sounds slightly polite.
So in real conversations, friends usually do not say Konnichiwa.
Instead, they say:
・Oh, hisashiburi! (Long time no see)
・Genki datta? (How have you been?)
Also, unlike “Ohayou”, there are almost no variations.
Only one standard form is used: Konnichiwa.
Konbanwa (Good Evening)
Konbanwa is a Japanese greeting used in the evening and at night, usually from around 5:00 PM to late night.
Pronunciation and Mora
Ko n ba n wa (5 mora)
こ
ん
ば
ん
は
Important point:
Just like “Konnichiwa”, the last “ha” is written as は but pronounced “wa”.
Correct:
こんばんは (ha)
Pronunciation:
こんばんわ (wa)
Do not write it as こんばんわ. That is incorrect.
Why does this happen?
This has the same origin as “Konnichiwa”.
In the Edo period, people said longer sentences such as:
・Konban wa ii yoru desu ne
・Konban wa atatakai desu ne
Over time, only the first part remained:
Konban wa (今晩は) → Konbanwa
Here again:
・Konban (tonight) → noun
・wa (は) → particle
So the particle は is pronounced “wa”.
That is why we write:
こんばんは
Important nuance
Konbanwa is the most formal greeting among the three.
In real conversations, friends usually do not say:
Konbanwa
Instead, they say:
・Oh, hisashiburi!
・Genki datta?
After work, people often say:
・Otsukaresama
・Otsukaresama desu
Also, like “Konnichiwa”, there are no variations.
Only one standard form is used: Konbanwa.
Summary
There are three basic Japanese greetings:
・Morning: Ohayou gozaimasu
・Daytime: Konnichiwa
・Evening: Konbanwa
These greetings are used based on the time of day.
They are also used in this order of frequency:
Ohayou gozaimasu → Konnichiwa → Konbanwa
Ohayou gozaimasu is used the most, followed by Konnichiwa, and then Konbanwa.
Variation
“Ohayou” has many variations:
・Oha
・Ohayoo
・Ohayou
・Ohayou gozaimasu
But:
・Konnichiwa
・Konbanwa
These have almost no variations.
Only one standard form is commonly used.
Important writing point
Konnichiwa and Konbanwa are pronounced “wa”,
but written with “は”.
This is because they originally came from longer sentences in the Edo period.
For example:
・Kyou wa (今日は)
・Konban wa (今晩は)
Here, “wa” is a particle written as “は”.
That is why:
こんにちは
こんばんは
are written with “は”, but read as “wa”.
Question for You
What greetings do you use in your country?Do you change them depending on the time of day?
Tell me in the comments!
