Japanese Greetings Reading Practice: Short Dialogues for Beginners

How to Use This Reading Practice

Each dialogue below is written in hiragana and katakana with furigana-style romaji below. Read the Japanese first without looking at the English, then check your comprehension. These conversations cover the greetings Japanese learners encounter first.

Dialogue 1: Morning at School

アキ： おはようございます。
(Ohayou gozaimasu.) — Good morning.

せんせい： おはよう。きょうは てんきが いいですね。
(Ohayou. Kyou wa tenki ga ii desu ne.) — Good morning. The weather is nice today, isn’t it.

アキ： そうですね。きょうは たいいくが あります。
(Sou desu ne. Kyou wa taiiku ga arimasu.) — Yes, it is. We have PE today.

Dialogue 2: Meeting a Friend

ケン： やあ、ひさしぶり！
(Yaa, hisashiburi!) — Hey, long time no see!

マリ： ほんとうに！げんきだった？
(Hontou ni! Genki datta?) — Really! Were you well?

ケン： うん、げんきだよ。マリは？
(Un, genki da yo. Mari wa?) — Yeah, I’m fine. How about you, Mari?

マリ： わたしも げんきです！
(Watashi mo genki desu!) — I’m fine too!

Dialogue 3: Parting Ways

ユキ： もう かえります。おさきに しつれいします。
(Mou kaerimasu. Osaki ni shitsurei shimasu.) — I’m heading home now. Excuse me for leaving first.

どうりょう： おつかれさまでした。またあした。
(Otsukaresama deshita. Mata ashita.) — Good work today. See you tomorrow.

Key Greeting Vocabulary

Comprehension Check

1. In Dialogue 1, what does the teacher comment on?
2. In Dialogue 2, what question does Ken ask Mari?
3. What does おさきに しつれいします mean and when is it used?

Answers: 1. The nice weather. / 2. Whether she is well (げんきだった？). / 3. “Excuse me for leaving before you” — used when leaving a workplace or group before others.

Yuka & Rei Read and Discuss a Greeting Text

Reading and listening get better when you also reflect and discuss. Here is how Yuka and Rei unpack the key ideas from this topic — notice the questions Yuka asks, because they’re probably the same ones you had.

Yuka

Rei, I read the greeting dialogues but I’m not sure I understood the nuance of おひさしぶりです. It means ‘long time no see’ but when exactly do you use it?

Rei

Use it when you haven’t seen someone for at least a few weeks — usually a month or more. A few days is too short. The response is often おひさしぶりです。おげんきでしたか？ — Long time no see. Have you been well?

Yuka

And for reading, how do I know if a greeting is formal or informal just by looking at it?

Rei

Length and suffix are the clearest signals. おはよう = casual, おはようございます = formal. じゃあね = casual goodbye, それではしつれいします = formal. Generally: the longer and more elaborate the greeting, the more formal it is.

5 Practice Sentences — Read These Aloud

These sentences use core vocabulary from this article. Read each one aloud at least three times to lock in the sound pattern.

1. おはようございます。きょうもよろしくおねがいします。
   Good morning. I’m counting on you again today.
2. おひさしぶりですね！おげんきでしたか？
   It’s been a while! Have you been well?
3. おじゃまします。よろしくおねがいします。
   Sorry for the intrusion. Please take care of me.
4. それではしつれいします。おつかれさまでした。
   I’ll be taking my leave. Good work today.
5. またあいましょう！
   Let’s meet again!

Your Turn! Leave Your Answer in the Comments

Reading and listening improve fastest when you also produce. Try writing 2–3 sentences summarising what you read, or create your own short text on the same topic using vocabulary from this article.

Post it in the comments — other learners will read it and it helps everyone. Log in to save your comment history and join the Top Commenters ranking in the sidebar!

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