こんにちは

also: こんにちわ · こにちわ · こにちは

こ

ん

に

ち

は

Common wordJLPTN4Freq.FrequencyTop 2,000

Meanings

interjection

hello; good day; good afternoon

usually written using kana alone

A standard daytime greeting used from late morning until early evening. The は is pronounced わ.

こんにちは、お元げん気きですか。
Hello, how are you?
先せん生せいに会あったら「こんにちは」と言いいましょう。
When you meet the teacher, say 'hello'.

See all 2,378 example sentences ›

Kanji

今now
日day, sun, Japan

Related words· 6

おはようございます
おはようございます is the morning greeting, while こんにちは is used from late morning through early evening.
こんばんはN4
こんばんは is the evening greeting, while こんにちは is used during the daytime.
ごきげんよう
こんにちは is the standard, neutral daytime greeting, while ご機嫌よう is a more formal, refined greeting that can be used at any time.
オラ
こんにちは is the standard Japanese greeting for 'hello', while オラ is a casual Spanish-derived greeting used in themed or playful contexts.

Show 2 more

アロハ
アロハ is a Hawaiian greeting that can mean both hello and goodbye, while こんにちは is the standard Japanese word used only for hello.
ハロー
こんにちは is the standard, natural Japanese greeting for 'hello,' while ハロー is a casual, English-borrowed greeting used playfully or in informal/foreign-influenced contexts.

Opposites

さようならN4
こんにちは is used to greet someone on meeting, the opposite moment to さようなら, which is said when parting.

Politeness

やあplain
こんにちは is the standard polite greeting used in most situations, while やあ is a casual, informal way to say hi among friends.

Written forms

こんにちはUsage89%
Standard kana spelling; the は is pronounced わ. This is the usual written form.
こんにちわUsage9%
irregular kana usage
Irregular kana spelling reflecting the pronunciation; sometimes seen in casual writing.
コンニチハUsage1%
コンニチワUsage1%
今日は
- こんにちは
  Kanji spelling, but the word is usually written in kana. May be confused with きょうは.
- こんにちわ
  irregular kana usage

Etymology

Derived from the phrase 今日は (こんにちは), literally 'as for today', which was originally part of a longer greeting such as 今日はご機嫌いかがですか (How are you today?). Over time it was shortened to just こんにちは.