There are several different levels of politeness in the Japanese language, keigo (敬語) being the highest. Keigo can be classified into three categories: sonkeigo (尊敬語;the person being talked about is of higher status), kenjougo (謙譲語; to humble oneself) and teineigo (丁寧語; listener is of higher status).
Example of usage
Standard verb |
keigo |
keigo hiragana |
translation |
category |
する |
致す |
いたす |
to do |
kenjougo |
知る |
存じる |
ぞんじる |
to know |
|
食べる |
頂く |
いただく |
to eat |
kenjougo |
食べる |
召し上がる |
めしあがる |
to eat |
sonkeigo |
External links
Last updated: 05-16-2005 06:17:21