Goal route
Keigo — Polite & Business Japanese Grammar
The keigo route. Japan's honorific system — respectful (尊敬語), humble (謙譲語) and polite (丁寧語) — is the grammar that workplace, service and formal Japanese is built on. Here it is as one connected set instead of a scattered list of special verbs.
Working in Japanese, or any setting where register is everything.
37
grammar points on this route
34
with a full written guide
Other routes through the map
Start here
Keigo assumes the foundations below. Start with these — they're ordered most-useful-first.
See the full route ↓Foundations — the shared spine · assumed by this route, start here if you're new
The full route
3 stages, ordered so each builds on the last. A filled dot marks a point with a full written guide; hollow dots are mapped, their guide still being written.
1 丁寧語 — Polite (です・ます register) 16 points
〜は〜です〜は〜です
topic-comment, polite: X は Y です
N5 copula wa-desu
ですです
polite copula 'is / are'
N5 copula desu
〜てくださいてください
please do ~
N5 auxiliary te-kudasai
〜ますます
Polite Verb Endings (ます・ません・ました)
N5 auxiliary masu-form
〜ましょうかましょうか
shall I ~? / shall we ~?
N5 modality mashou-ka
〜ませんかませんか
won't you ~? (invitation)
N5 modality masen-ka
てはいけませんてはいけません
must not ~ (polite)
N5 modality te-wa-ikemasen
でしょうでしょう
probably ~ / ~, right? (polite)
N5 modality deshou
のですのです
explanatory のだ (polite / written)
N5 modality no-desu
ましょうましょう
let's ~ (polite volitional)
N5 modality mashou
〜でございますでございます
to be ~
N4 copula de-gozaimasu
ございますございます
there is
N4 auxiliary gozaimasu
〜たらいいですかたらいいですか
what should I ~?
N4 modality tara-ii-desu-ka
いかがいかが
how / how about ~?
N4 adverbial ikaga
〜のでしょうかのでしょうか
is it that ~?
N3 modality no-deshou-ka
そうですがそうですが
that may be so, but ~
N3 connective so-desu-ga
2 尊敬語 — Respectful (elevating others) 11 points
くださいください
please give me ~
N5 auxiliary kudasai
ないでくださいないでください
please do not ~
N5 auxiliary nai-de-kudasai
てくださるてくださる
someone kindly does ~ for me
N4 auxiliary te-kudasaru
いらっしゃるいらっしゃる
to be / come / go
N4 honorific irassharu
お〜くださいお〜ください
please do ~
N4 honorific o-vmasu-kudasai
お〜になるお〜になる
honorific form of a verb
N4 honorific o-ni-naru
くださるくださる
honorific of くれる: (a superior) gives to me/us
N4 honorific kudasaru
なさるなさる
to do
N4 honorific nasaru
〜方がた
polite pluralizing suffix for people
N4 other gata
ないようにしてくださいないようにしてください
please make sure not to ~
N3 modality nai-youni-shite-kudasai
〜られるられる
honorific/spontaneous られる: respectful verb form, and spontan
N3 honorific rareru
3 謙譲語 — Humble (lowering yourself) 10 points
いただくいただく
receive (humble)
N4 auxiliary itadaku
〜ていただけませんかていただけませんか
could you please ~?
N4 auxiliary te-itadakemasen-ka
ていただくていただく
have someone do ~
N4 auxiliary te-itadaku
いたしますいたします
to do
N4 honorific itashimasu
いたすいたす
to do
N4 honorific itasu
お〜するお〜する
humble form: I humbly do ~ for you
N4 honorific o-suru-2
さしあげるさしあげる
to give (humble, to a superior)
N4 other sashiageru
お〜する / ご〜するおする
humble お/ご + verb-stem + する: humbly do
N3 honorific o-suru
てさしあげるてさしあげる
do ~ for someone
N3 auxiliary te-sashiageru
お〜願うおねがう
to
N2 auxiliary o-negau
Practice this grammar in context
Jengo shows these patterns inside real sentences, so they stick as comprehension — not flashcards.