さ
Japanese Honorifics Guide
When to use san, kun, chan, sama, sensei and more — complete reference guide.
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What are Japanese Honorifics?
Japanese honorifics (敬称, keishō) are suffixes added to a person's name that express the speaker's relationship to that person. Using the wrong honorific can come across as rude or overly familiar. In Japan, you generally never use honorifics with your own name — only with other people's names.
～san
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Formality
Common
Any
✅ When to use:
Used with almost everyone — coworkers, strangers, adults. Safe default.
❌ When NOT to use:
Don't use with close friends, children (too formal), or in very casual settings
田中さん (Tanaka-san)
Mr./Ms. Tanaka
💡 Most versatile honorific. Use when in doubt.
～kun
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Formality
Casual
Male (usually)
✅ When to use:
Superiors to younger male subordinates, teachers to male students, among close male friends
❌ When NOT to use:
Avoid using with superiors or older people; rarely used by peers to each other
山田くん (Yamada-kun)
Yamada (young male subordinate)
💡 Common in schools and workplaces. Can sound condescending if misused.
～chan
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Formality
Casual
Female / Children / Cute
✅ When to use:
Close female friends, young children, pet names for loved ones
❌ When NOT to use:
Never in formal/business settings; inappropriate for seniors or strangers
さくらちゃん (Sakura-chan)
Little Sakura (affectionate)
💡 Very endearing and affectionate. Reflects close relationship.
～sama
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Formality
Formal
Any
✅ When to use:
Customers (お客様), very important guests, very formal letters, gods/royalty
❌ When NOT to use:
Don't use in daily conversation — too formal and can feel sarcastic if overused
お客様 (o-kyaku-sama)
Valued customer / esteemed guest
💡 Highest of the common honorifics. Used in shops: "Thank you, honored guest"
～dono
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Formality
Formal
Any
✅ When to use:
Official documents, certificates, formal letters — archaic but still on awards/certificates
❌ When NOT to use:
Very old-fashioned in speech; some feel it implies superiority over the recipient
田中一郎殿 (Tanaka Ichiro-dono)
To: Tanaka Ichiro (formal document)
💡 Often seen on 賞状 (awards/certificates). Avoided in modern business emails.
～sensei
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Formality
Professional
Any
✅ When to use:
Teachers, doctors, lawyers, politicians, manga artists — anyone with professional expertise
❌ When NOT to use:
Don't use for yourself (extremely impolite to call yourself sensei)
山本先生 (Yamamoto-sensei)
Teacher/Dr. Yamamoto
💡 Literally means "one who came before." Shows respect for expertise.
～shi
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Formality
Professional
Any (usually male)
✅ When to use:
Formal written documents, newspaper articles, official reports about someone
❌ When NOT to use:
Rarely used in speech — sounds very stiff and journalist-like
鈴木氏 (Suzuki-shi)
Mr./Ms. Suzuki (formal article)
💡 Commonly seen in news articles and formal written documents.
～kun
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Formality
Professional
Any (in writing)
✅ When to use:
Parliament/Diet speeches (議員名), formal documents referring to young colleagues
❌ When NOT to use:
Confusingly the same reading as くん — this kanji form is for more formal contexts
議員君 (giin-kun)
Honorable Diet member
💡 Distinct from the casual くん. Seen in parliamentary settings.
～o-
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Formality
Prefix
Any
✅ When to use:
Added to nouns to make them polite/beautiful. お名前 (o-namae = your name), お茶 (o-cha = tea)
❌ When NOT to use:
Don't add お to everything — Chinese-origin words take ご instead; some words just don't take it
お名前・お仕事・お茶
Your name / Your job / Tea (polite)
💡 Used for Japanese-origin (和語) words. Adds elegance and politeness.
～go-
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Formality
Prefix
Any
✅ When to use:
Polite prefix for Chinese-origin words: ご家族 (go-kazoku = your family), ご連絡 (go-renraku = your contact)
❌ When NOT to use:
Don't use for Japanese-origin words (use お instead); don't add to your own actions unless humble
ご家族・ご連絡・ご説明
Your family / Your contact / Explanation (polite)
💡 Used for Sino-Japanese (漢語) words. Very common in business Japanese.
📋 Golden Rules for Japanese Honorifics
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Never use honorifics for yourself
Always drop honorifics when referring to your own name. Saying "watashi wa Tanaka-san desu" sounds unnatural. Say "Tanaka desu."
✅
さん is almost always safe
When in doubt, use さん. It works for adults of any gender in formal and semi-formal situations.
🏢
Use titles in formal workplaces
In Japanese business, address colleagues by role: 部長 (buchou = department head), 課長 (kachou = section chief), rather than name + さん.
💝
Calling someone by first name is very intimate
Japanese people typically use family (last) names with honorifics. First names are used only with very close friends or by parents to children.
📛
Japanese names: family name first
In Japanese order: 田中一郎 = Tanaka Ichiro. Family name (田中) comes first. Use 田中さん, not 一郎さん (unless close friend).
⚠️
Dropping honorifics = 呼び捨て
Addressing someone with no honorific (呼び捨て, yobisute) is either very close/intimate or outright rude — know the relationship before doing this.
🏭 Workplace Title Reference (JFT Workplace Japanese)
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