いらっしゃる・
The first word you hear in a Japanese shop, いらっしゃいませ, comes from one of these. A few everyday verbs have a respectful verb of their own, for when the other person is the one who goes, says, does, eats or looks.
ている
The teacher is talking with a student right now.
The verbs
行く・来る・いる → いらっしゃる 言う → おっしゃる する → なさる 食べる・飲む → 召し上がる 見る → ご覧になる
Polite いらっしゃいます, おっしゃいます, なさいます.
ていらっしゃる
Verb in the て-form + いらっしゃる
The respectful ている.
Who is doing it?
Respectful forms raise what the other person does. Humble forms lower what you, or your side, do. You never raise yourself, and to an outsider you never raise your own family or company.
These verbs are respectful: a customer, a teacher, a boss or a stranger does it. Each has a humble partner.
| Everyday | They do it | You do it |
|---|---|---|
| 行く・来る | いらっしゃる | 参る, 伺う |
| いる | いらっしゃる | おる |
| 言う | おっしゃる | 申す |
| する | な | いたす |
| 食べる・飲む | 召し上がる | いただく |
| 見る | ご覧に | 拝見する |
| 会う | お会いに | お目に |
会う has only お目にかかる of its own.
いらっしゃる, おっしゃる and なさる take い before ます: いらっしゃいます, not いらっしゃります. Other forms are regular: いらっしゃった, おっしゃって, なさらない.
What you'll hear
いらっしゃる is go, come or be. The situation says which.
いらっしゃいませwelcome; come in
Welcome. How many in your party?
いらっしゃるgo, come, be
When did you come to Japan?
なさるdo
What seems to be the matter?
With に it is choosing: 何になさいますか.
召し上がるeat, drink
Will you be eating here, or is it to go?
ご覧になるsee, look at, watch
Would you like to see the menu?
ていらっしゃる: the respectful ている
It covers what ている covers: is doing, is in that state, does regularly.
The teacher is reading the materials.
The teacher.
Where do you live?
The customer is sitting near the window.
Where it goes wrong
Answering with the same verb
Asked with a respectful verb, you answer with the everyday verb or its humble partner. The action is now yours.
Are you coming to the party tomorrow?
はい、行きます is fine too.
Not said: はい、
(Yes, I'm coming too.)
It raises you.
Raising your own side
Sounds odd: 母も
My mother said so too.
It raises your own mother in front of someone outside the family. 母もそう言いました.
Sounds odd: 田中部長は
Mr. Tanaka, our manager, is not in at the moment.
To a caller from another company, your boss is your side: 田中はただいまおりません.
Adding れる on top
Sounds odd: 先生が
The teacher said so.
おっしゃる with the respectful れる added. Heard, but widely called a mistake: おっしゃいました.
Close neighbours
The passive ending is also a lighter respectful form. These verbs take it too: 行かれる, 来られる, 言われる, される.
Where are you going?
The humble partners, for what you do.
My name is Tanaka.
Check yourself
1Someone from another company asks you this. Which answer is right?
昼ご飯は
Choose an answer to see why.
2Which one fits?
お客様は
Choose an answer to see why.
3Which one is right?
先生は
Choose an answer to see why.
More detail
いらっしゃい, なさい, ください
The command forms of いらっしゃる, なさる and くださる. いらっしゃいませ is "come in". 食べなさい, a parent's order, has no respect left in it.
いらして
In conversation いらっしゃって often shortens to いらして.
Please come again.
More sentences
The company president will come here at three in the afternoon.
The department head is going to Osaka next week.
What did the department manager say at the meeting?
What does the company president do on weekends?
The teacher doesn't eat spicy food.
The teacher saw that exhibition yesterday.
My teacher lived in Kyoto when she was young.
The teacher has been teaching tea ceremony in this classroom for over ten years.