N3 · Politeness
ございます and the formal register
ございます, でございます and polite set phrases
The most formal way to say "there is" and "is" — and the vocabulary that comes with it.
ございます is the formal form of あります, and でございます is the formal form of です. They raise nobody and lower nobody: they are simply politeness towards the listener at its highest setting. You hear them from shop staff, hotel receptions, announcements and anybody giving a formal speech: お手洗いは二階にございます.
They rarely come alone. The same register swaps a whole set of everyday words for formal ones: 今日 becomes 本日, ちょっと becomes 少々, 今 becomes ただいま, 後で becomes 後ほど, ここ becomes こちら, and いい becomes よろしい. Learning them as a package is what makes service Japanese understandable.
でございます is for things, places and your own side. For the person you are speaking to, the honorific でいらっしゃいます is needed instead: 田中様でいらっしゃいますか, "are you Mr Tanaka?". Asking a customer whether they でございます is a well-known slip.
A handful of set phrases use the same word and are worth having ready: 申し訳ございません, the formal apology; かしこまりました, "certainly"; 恐れ入ります, "I am much obliged" or "excuse me"; and the greetings that end in ございます themselves.
The form
| there is | あります→ございます |
| is | です→でございます |
| is (of a person you respect) | です→でいらっしゃいます |
| good, all right | いいです→よろしいです |
| a little | ちょっと→少々 |
| now | 今→ただいま |
| today | 今日→本日 |
| yesterday | 昨日→昨日 |
| later | 後で→後ほど |
| here, this way | ここ→こちら |
| who | だれ→どなた |
| sorry | すみません→申し訳ございません |
| understood | 分かりました→かしこまりました |
The rules one by one
ございます replaces あります.
駐車場は建物の裏にございます。The car park is behind the building.
でございます replaces です for things, places and your own side.
こちらが新しいモデルでございます。This is the new model.
For a person you respect, use でいらっしゃいます, not でございます.
失礼ですが、山本様でいらっしゃいますか。Excuse me, are you Mr Yamamoto?
In this register, everyday words are replaced too: 本日, 少々, ただいま, 後ほど.
本日はご来店いただき、ありがとうございます。Thank you for visiting us today.
よろしい replaces いい in polite questions.
ご注文は以上でよろしいでしょうか。Will that be everything?
A closer look
Three ways to say "there is"
ある, あります and ございます say exactly the same thing at three levels of politeness towards the listener. None of them says anything about the thing that exists, which is why ございます can be used for a car park, a size of shoe or a question in the audience.
For people the story is different. The existence of a person you respect is いらっしゃる, and the existence of yourself or your colleagues, said to a customer, is おる. In one sentence at a hotel desk you may hear all three: the room ございます, the manager おります, the guest いらっしゃいます.
How to spot it
- ございます
- でございます
- よろしい
- 本日
- 少々
- ただいま
- 後ほど
Example sentences
申し訳ございません。ただいま満席でございます。I am very sorry. All our tables are taken at the moment.
こちらのサイズは、ただいま在庫がございません。We do not have this size in stock at the moment.
会議室は三階でございます。The meeting room is on the third floor.
ほかに何かご質問はございますか。Do you have any other questions?
かしこまりました。少々お待ちください。Certainly. One moment, please.
本日は誠にありがとうございました。Thank you very much for today.
7 more example sentences
お電話ありがとうございます。さくら書店でございます。Thank you for calling. Sakura Bookshop, how can I help?
恐れ入りますが、もう一度お名前をお願いできますか。I am sorry, could I have your name once more?
後ほど担当の者からご連絡いたします。Somebody from the department responsible will contact you later.
昨日はお忙しいところ、ありがとうございました。Thank you for your time yesterday, when you were so busy.
お誕生日おめでとうございます。Happy birthday.
こちらのお席でよろしいですか。Is this table all right for you?
お手洗いはあちらの奥でございます。The toilets are at the far end over there.
Worth knowing (2)
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ありがとうございます is an adjective in disguise
The old way of making an i-adjective formal was to change its ending and add ございます. It survives in very formal speech (よろしゅうございます), but in everyday language only three greetings keep it: ありがたい became ありがとう, 早い became おはよう, めでたい became おめでとう — each followed by ございます. That is why these three can be shortened to their first word among friends.
おはようございます。今日もよろしくお願いします。Good morning. Let's have a good day today.
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こちらコーヒーになります
In restaurants you will often hear こちらコーヒーになります, "this becomes your coffee", in place of でございます. It is so common that learners copy it, but many people regard it as service jargon rather than correct keigo. If you want to be safe, say でございます.
お待たせいたしました。コーヒーでございます。Sorry to keep you waiting. Here is your coffee.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
Both forms translate as "is", and both sound very formal, so they are easy to swap. But でございます is only politeness towards the listener, and it is used about things and about yourself; asked about the listener, it treats them like a thing. A person you respect takes the honorific でいらっしゃいます.
ございます for things and for yourself; でいらっしゃいます for the person in front of you.
Your turn
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