おはよう

お

は

よ

う

Common wordJLPTN4Freq.FrequencyTop 2,000

Meanings

1

interjection

good morning

usually written using kana alone

Casual morning greeting, also used at any time of day in some workplaces and industries.

Expressions

おはようさんgood morning

Kanji

早early, fast
御honorable, manipulate, govern

Related words

こんばんはN4
おはよう greets someone in the morning, whereas 今晩は greets someone in the evening.

Politeness

おはようございますpolite 丁寧語
おはよう is the casual form used with friends or family, while おはようございます is the polite form used with strangers, superiors, or in formal settings.

Word family

おはようございます
good morning

Written forms

おはようUsage93%
Standard kana spelling; the word is usually written in kana.
お早はようUsage6%
Kanji spelling; rarely used in modern writing.
オハヨーUsage1%
オハヨウUsage<1%
おはよーUsage<1%

Etymology

Developed from the polite morning greeting お早うございます, literally expressing that something is early. お早う is the adverbial form of 早い used in this polite construction.

おはよー
search-only kana form
おはよう
Search-only kana form reflecting casual elongated pronunciation.

御早おはようUsage<1%

search-only kanji form

Search-only kanji form; not used in practice.