Keigo: The Basics of Honorific Language
- Distinguish the three branches of keigo: teineigo, sonkeigo, and kenjōgo
- Recognize common honorific and humble verb substitutions
- Choose respectful language appropriate to social hierarchy
Three branches of respect language
Keigo (敬語) is Japanese honorific language, and it has three branches. Teineigo (丁寧語), polite language, is the です／ます style you already use to sound courteous to anyone. Sonkeigo (尊敬語), respectful language, raises the listener or a third party by elevating their actions. Kenjōgo (謙譲語), humble language, lowers yourself by humbling your own actions toward someone you respect. The core idea: elevate others, humble yourself — never the reverse.
Special honorific and humble verbs
Some everyday verbs have entirely special keigo forms. Take する (suru, “do”): honorific なさる (nasaru), humble いたす (itasu). 行く／来る／いる (go / come / be): honorific いらっしゃる (irassharu), humble 参る (mairu) / おる (oru). 言う (iu, “say”): honorific おっしゃる (ossharu), humble 申す (mōsu). 食べる／飲む (eat / drink): honorific 召し上がる (meshiagaru), humble いただく (itadaku). 見る (miru, “see”): honorific ご覧になる (goran ni naru), humble 拝見する (haiken suru). These substitutions are memorized as fixed pairs.
Who does the action decides the branch
The decisive question is whose action is it? If the respected person (a customer, teacher, boss) performs the action, use sonkeigo to elevate them: 先生がいらっしゃいます (Sensei ga irasshaimasu, “the teacher comes/is here”). If you perform an action that affects or serves that person, use kenjōgo to humble yourself: 私が参ります (Watashi ga mairimasu, “I will come/go”). Using a humble form for the respected person’s action — or an honorific form for your own — is a serious error that reverses the social meaning.
A store clerk wants to ask a customer politely, “Will you (the customer) eat here?” and then say, “I will bring it.” Choose sonkeigo for the customer and kenjōgo for the clerk.
- 1.The customer is the respected party performing “eat,” so use the honorific (sonkeigo) form of 食べる: 召し上がる (meshiagaru).
- 2.Ask politely: こちらで召し上がりますか (Kochira de meshiagarimasu ka, “Will you eat here?”).
- 3.The clerk performs “bring,” serving the customer, so use a humble (kenjōgo) form: 持ってくる → お持ちします (o-mochi shimasu).
- 4.State it: お持ちします (O-mochi shimasu, “I will bring it”).
A teacher is the one doing the action “to eat.” Which keigo verb correctly elevates the teacher?
The classic keigo mistake is applying a humble form to the respected person, e.g. saying 先生が申しました for “the teacher said.” 申す is humble and lowers the subject, so it must be your words; the teacher’s speech takes the honorific おっしゃいました (osshaimashita). Match the branch to who acts.
On the phone you refer to your own act of “going” to a client’s office. Which form is appropriate?
AP does not expect flawless keigo, but recognizing and producing basic sonkeigo/kenjōgo raises your register on formal tasks like a business email or a speech to an audience. Memorize the handful of special verb pairs (いらっしゃる／参る, おっしゃる／申す, 召し上がる／いただく) — they carry most real-world keigo.
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