When you’re traveling in Japan, you’ll quickly notice that many everyday words—like coffee, hotel, or camera—sound strangely familiar. That’s because Japanese often uses borrowed words from other languages (especially English!). These words are represented with katakana, one of its three writing systems. These borrowed words are written and pronounced in a distinctly Japanese way, however.
This guide covers practical English-origin words in Japanese, along with a pronunciation guide to help you be understood. Whether you’re checking into a hotel, ordering lunch, or asking for help at the station, this guide’s got you covered.
Pronunciation tip: Practice by sounding out the words slowly. It’ll sound weird because it’s an English word but also not. As you get used to the feeling of the syllables, try saying them more quickly. Japanese is a fast spoken language!
📷 If your travels bring you to Kyoto consider booking a tour or photography session with us!
✈️ At the Airport and Arrival
🛂 At the Airport
Passport（パスポート）/ pah-su-poh-toh
Ticket（チケット）/ chee-keh-toh
Immigration（イミグレーション）/ ee-mee-grey-shon
Terminal（ターミナル）/ tah-mee-nah-roo
Elevator（エレベーター）/ eh-reh-bay-tah
Escalator（エスカレーター）/ eh-skah-ray-tah
Information（インフォメーション）/ een-foh-may-shon
Check-in counter（チェックインカウンター）/ che-koo in kah-oon-tah
Security check（セキュリティチェック）/ seh-kyu-ri-tee che-koo
🚕 Getting Around (Transportation)
Taxi（タクシー）/ tah-koo-shee
Bus（バス）/ bah-su
Train（トレイン）/ toh-rayn
Station（ステーション）/ steh-ee-shon
Platform（プラットフォーム）/ poo-rah-toh-foh-moo
Ticket machine（チケットマシーン）/ chee-keh-toh mah-sheen
IC card（アイシーカード）/ eye-shee kah-doh
Map（マップ）/ mah-poo
Exit（エグジット）/ eh-goo-jee-toh
Express train（エクスプレストレイン）/ eh-koo-soo-pu-reh-su toh-rayn
🏨 At the Hotel
Reception（レセプション）/ reh-seh-poo-shon
Room key（ルームキー）/ roo-moo kee
Elevator（エレベーター）/ eh-reh-bay-tah
Check-in（チェックイン）/ che-koo in
Check-out（チェックアウト）/ che-koo ah-oo-toh
Room service（ルームサービス）/ roo-moo sah-bee-soo
Twin room（ツインルーム）/ tsoo-een roo-moo
Double room（ダブルルーム）/ dah-boo-roo roo-moo
Shampoo（シャンプー）/ shahn-poo
Conditioner（コンディショナー）/ kohn-dee-sho-nah
🍱 Eating Out
Menu（メニュー）/ meh-nyoo
Drink（ドリンク）/ doh-reen-koo
Beer（ビール）/ bee-roo
Juice（ジュース）/ joo-soo
Coffee（コーヒー）/ koh-hee
Ice cream（アイスクリーム）/ eye-soo koo-ree-moo
Sandwich（サンドイッチ）/ sahn-doh-ee-chee
Hamburger（ハンバーガー）/ hahn-bah-gah
Salad（サラダ）/ sah-rah-dah
Steak（ステーキ）/ steh-ee-kee
Pizza（ピザ）/ pee-zah
Mayonnaise（マヨネーズ）/ mah-yoh-neh-zu
French fries（フレンチフライ）/ foo-ren-chee foo-rai
Dessert（デザート）/ deh-zah-toh
Fork（フォーク）/ foh-koo
Knife（ナイフ）/ nah-ee-foo
Spoon（スプーン）/ soo-poon
Napkin（ナプキン）/ nah-poo-kin
🛍 Shopping & Payments
Shopping（ショッピング）/ sho-ping-goo
Department store（デパートメントストア）/ deh-pah-toh-men-toh stoh-ah
Supermarket（スーパーマーケット）/ soo-pah mah-keh-toh
Size（サイズ）/ sah-ee-zoo
Discount（ディスカウント）/ dee-soo-kah-oon-toh
Credit card（クレジットカード）/ koo-reh-jeet-toh kah-doh
Cash（キャッシュ）/ kyah-shoo
Receipt（レシート）/ reh-shee-toh
Bag（バッグ）/ bah-goo
Tax-free（タックスフリー）/ tah-koo-soo foo-ree
Sale（セール）/ seh-roo
Brand（ブランド）/ boo-rahn-doh
Fashion（ファッション）/ fah-shon
💊 Drugstore & Emergencies
Mask（マスク）/ mah-skoo
Bandage（バンデージ）/ bahn-deh-jee
Ice pack（アイスパック）/ eye-soo pah-koo
Doctor（ドクター）/ doh-koo-tah
Clinic（クリニック）/ koo-ree-ni-koo
Hospital（ホスピタル）/ hoh-soo-pee-tah-roo
Emergency（エマージェンシー）/ eh-mah-jehn-shee
Vitamin（ビタミン）/ bee-tah-meen
Syrup（シロップ）/ shee-ropoo
🎁 Souvenirs & Entertainment
Postcard（ポストカード）/ poh-sue-toh kah-doh
Keychain（キーチェーン）/ kee chehn
T-shirt（Tシャツ）/ tee shah-tsoo
Concert（コンサート）/ kohn-sah-toh
Music（ミュージック）/ myoo-jee-koo
Movie（ムービー）/ moo-bee
Camera（カメラ）/ kah-meh-rah
Photo spot（フォトスポット）/ foh-toh spoh-toh
Guide（ガイド）/ guy-doh
🧳 Conclusion
These English-derived words are part of everyday Japanese vocabulary. If you pronounce them the Japanese way—clearly, and with syllables—it greatly increases your chances of being understood. This list can be your secret weapon for smoother, more confident communication throughout your trip.
If you want to take it a step further and venture into the more nitty gritty–check out our blog on essential Japanese phrases.
🎥 For more travel tips and guides on all things Japan check out the PiQtour YouTube channel!
