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Choose a topic, read the examples and try the exercises before revealing the answers. Follow a related lesson when you are ready to use the same idea in a new situation.

Adventure journal

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N4Japanese politeness and forms of address

Politeness at a first meeting

Learn how to introduce yourself politely in Japanese, address a new acquaintance and close your first greeting.

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N4Japanese politeness and forms of address

Recognising an indirect refusal

Learn to recognise a gentle Japanese refusal from hesitation, an explanation or an alternative date, and practise responding to context.

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N3Japanese politeness and forms of address

Japanese keigo: respectful, humble and polite forms

Learn how Japanese keigo changes with the person acting and the listener, and practise choosing respectful, humble or polite forms.

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N3Japanese politeness and forms of address

Respectful language: sonkeigo

Learn Japanese sonkeigo for another person’s actions, including お〜になる and special respectful verbs.

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N3Japanese politeness and forms of address

Humble Japanese for your own actions

Learn how kenjougo presents your actions humbly, from 伺う and 拝見する to the お〜する pattern.

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N3Japanese politeness and forms of address

Polite です and ます in context

Choose Japanese polite endings for colleagues and other listeners, and practise tense and negation in context.

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N3Japanese politeness and forms of address

Polite prefixes お and ご

Learn how Japanese polite prefixes お and ご accompany nouns, and practise common forms and exceptions in context.

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N3Japanese politeness and forms of address

Respectful actions with お〜になる

Learn how お〜になる raises the person performing an action, and practise forming respectful Japanese sentences.

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N3Japanese politeness and forms of address

Humble actions with お〜する

Learn how お〜する and ご〜する describe your actions respectfully toward another person, with examples and practice.

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N3Japanese politeness and forms of address

In-group and out-group perspective

Learn how Japanese speakers adjust respectful and humble language when talking about their own group to an outsider.

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N3Japanese politeness and forms of address

Apologising at work

Learn to apologise for a delay or mistake in Japanese, explain the problem and say how you will put it right.

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N3Japanese politeness and forms of address

Asking permission with appropriate distance

Choose a natural Japanese permission request for friends, teachers and formal situations, and practise polite variations.

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N3Japanese politeness and forms of address

Respectful and humble verb pairs

Choose common Japanese respectful and humble verbs for going, saying and seeing in formal situations.

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N3Japanese politeness and forms of address

Avoiding double honorifics

Learn to avoid double honorifics in Japanese and choose a respectful or humble form for the person acting.

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N3Japanese politeness and forms of address

Recognising polite service speech

Recognise common Japanese service expressions at shops and restaurants, and identify who performs each action.

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N2Japanese politeness and forms of address

Business phone calls in keigo

Practise Japanese business calls: introduce yourself, ask for a colleague, put a caller on hold and arrange a return call politely.

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N2Japanese politeness and forms of address

Keigo inside and outside the company

Choose respectful or humble Japanese when speaking to a colleague or describing your team to a client.

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N2Japanese politeness and forms of address

Respectful passive forms

Learn how Japanese passive-shaped verbs express respect, and practise choosing them for a teacher or guest.

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N2Japanese politeness and forms of address

Honorifics in formal messages

Choose Japanese honorific and humble forms for formal messages, requests and replies, based on who performs each action.

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N2Japanese politeness and forms of address

Making a difficult request with context

Learn to explain the circumstances, acknowledge the burden and make a difficult Japanese request with room to decline.

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N2Japanese politeness and forms of address

Repairing a mismatch in politeness

Learn to notice a Japanese register mismatch and repair it naturally when speaking to a teacher, colleague, or friend.

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N2Japanese politeness and forms of address

Expressing thanks in formal situations

Choose natural Japanese expressions of gratitude for formal meetings, ongoing support, and help already received.

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N1Japanese politeness and forms of address

Nuance and register in formal keigo

Choose respectful and humble Japanese expressions for formal situations, and practise adjusting register to the people involved.

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N1Japanese politeness and forms of address

Addressing an institution in writing

Choose 御中 or 様 in Japanese correspondence and address an office respectfully in the body of a formal inquiry.

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