Japan is one of the smoothest countries in the world to travel — trains run to the second, everything works — right up until you need to read or say something and can't. The fix isn't fluency. It's a small kit of phrases plus a translator for the rest.
The ten that carry you
If you learn nothing else, learn these:
| Japanese | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| すみません | sumimasen | excuse me / sorry / thank you (the Swiss-army word) |
| ありがとうございます | arigatou gozaimasu | thank you (polite) |
| お願いします | onegaishimasu | please / I'll have this |
| はい / いいえ | hai / iie | yes / no |
| これ | kore | this (point at it) |
| いくらですか | ikura desu ka | how much is it? |
| 大丈夫です | daijoubu desu | I'm fine / no thanks / it's okay |
| わかりません | wakarimasen | I don't understand |
| 英語 | eigo | English |
| トイレ | toire | toilet |
Sumimasen alone does more work than any other word — it gets a waiter's attention, apologises for a bump, and thanks someone, all depending on tone.
Food and ordering
- メニュー (menyuu) — menu · おすすめ (osusume) — what do you recommend?
- お水 (o-mizu) — water · お会計 (o-kaikei) — the check, please
- 持ち帰り (mochikaeri) — takeout · 店内 (tennai) — eat in
- 辛い (karai) — spicy · アレルギー (arerugii) — allergy
When the menu itself is the obstacle, don't spell it out phrase by phrase — point your camera at it. Full guide: how to translate a Japanese menu.
Directions and trains
- 駅 (eki) — station · 出口 (deguchi) — exit · 入口 (iriguchi) — entrance
- 右 (migi) — right · 左 (hidari) — left · まっすぐ (massugu) — straight ahead
- どこですか (doko desu ka) — where is…? · 近い (chikai) — near
Station signage is mostly bilingual in cities, but platform notices, delay announcements and small-town stations often aren't — a camera translator covers the gaps.
If something goes wrong
- 助けて (tasukete) — help! · 病院 (byouin) — hospital
- 警察 (keisatsu) — police · 痛い (itai) — it hurts
- アレルギーがあります (arerugii ga arimasu) — I have an allergy
For anything urgent or detailed, a voice translator beats fishing for the right phrase — say it in English, let it speak Japanese, and hear the reply back in English.
The two rules of using a translator abroad
- Make it work offline. The moments you need it most — a rural station, a basement restaurant, the subway — are exactly where signal dies. On-device translation downloads the language once and never needs a connection.
- Point, don't type, for real-world text. Signs, menus and labels are faster to read with a camera than to copy out. Save typing for messages you can select.
A little politeness plus a translator that reads the world in place gets you further in Japan than months of flashcards. Yomi handles the camera, voice and text sides in one app — offline, on your iPhone — so the forty phrases are yours and everything else is a point away. Read the full rundown of Japanese-to-English methods if you want to go deeper.