Shopping is the friendliest place to practise Japanese, because the script barely changes: the same greeting when you enter, the same questions at the register, the same closing thanks. Master one konbini visit and you have mastered thousands. The trap is that cashiers speak fast and use ultra-polite forms you may not recognise from textbooks — so this page teaches you what the sentences are, what they mean, and the two or three words you actually need to answer. Prices, quantities and shop dialogues also fill a good share of JFT-Basic vocabulary and listening questions.
Shop and payment words
| Japanese | Reading | English |
|---|---|---|
| 店 | みせ | shop, store |
| コンビニ | コンビニ | convenience store |
| スーパー | スーパー | supermarket |
| 店員 | てんいん | shop staff |
| 値段 | ねだん | price |
| お金 | おかね | money |
| お釣り | おつり | change (money back) |
| 袋 | ふくろ | bag |
| レシート | レシート | receipt |
| 現金 | げんきん | cash |
| カード | カード | card |
| セール | セール | sale |
| 安い | やすい | cheap |
| 高い | たかい | expensive |
| 大きい・小さい | おおきい・ちいさい | big / small |
| 温める | あたためる | to heat up (bento) |
| 試着 | しちゃく | trying on clothes |
| 両替 | りょうがえ | money exchange |
Phrases that do the work
| Say this | Meaning |
|---|---|
| これを ください。 これを ください。 | This one, please. (works for everything) |
| いくらですか。 いくらですか。 | How much is it? |
| もっと 安いのは ありますか。 もっと やすいのは ありますか。 | Is there a cheaper one? |
| 袋は いりません。 ふくろは いりません。 | I don't need a bag. |
| 温めて ください。 あたためて ください。 | Please heat it up. (konbini bento) |
| カードで 払えますか。 カードで はらえますか。 | Can I pay by card? |
| 試着しても いいですか。 しちゃくしても いいですか。 | May I try this on? |
| ちょっと 見て いるだけです。 ちょっと みて いるだけです。 | I'm just looking, thanks. |
At the konbini register
Read it aloud twice — once for meaning, once for rhythm. Then cover the English and try again.
店員いらっしゃいませ。お弁当、温めますか。Welcome! Shall I heat up the bento?
あなたはい、お願いします。Yes, please.
店員お箸は お付けしますか。Would you like chopsticks with it?
あなたはい。あと、この コーヒーも お願いします。Yes. And this coffee too, please.
店員かしこまりました。袋は ご利用ですか。Certainly. Do you need a bag?
あなたいいえ、いりません。No, I don't need one.
店員合計で 680円です。That comes to 680 yen in total.
あなたカードで お願いします。By card, please.
Signs to recognise on sight
| Sign | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 営業中 | えいぎょうちゅう | Open (for business) |
| 準備中 | じゅんびちゅう | Closed / preparing |
| 半額 | はんがく | Half price |
| 割引 | わりびき | Discount (２割引 = 20% off) |
| 税込 | ぜいこみ | Tax included |
| 税抜 | ぜいぬき | Tax NOT included |
| レジ | レジ | Register / checkout |
| お手洗い | おてあらい | Toilet |
Things nobody tells you
いらっしゃいませ needs no reply. It is a welcome, not a question — a nod or nothing at all is the normal response. Beginners who answer こんにちは to every いらっしゃいませ charm the staff but out themselves instantly.
The konbini asks yes/no questions in polite disguise. 温めますか (heat it?), お箸は お付けしますか (chopsticks?), 袋は ご利用ですか (bag?) — all answered with はい、お願いします or いいえ、いりません(大丈夫です). Two answers cover the entire register experience.
Watch for 税抜 prices. A price tag marked 税抜 excludes the 10% consumption tax; 税込 includes it. The register total being higher than the shelf price is 税抜 at work, not an error.
２割引 means 20% off, not 2%. 割 counts tenths: １割 = 10%, ３割引 = 30% off. Paired with 半額 (half price), these two signs decide when the bento becomes a bargain — supermarkets discount them at night.
Check yourself
1. The cashier asks 「袋は ご利用ですか」. They want to know:
袋 = bag; ご利用ですか is the ultra-polite "will you use…?". Since bags cost a few yen now, this question ends nearly every purchase in Japan.
2. A sign reads 「３割引」. The discount is:
割 counts tenths, so ３割引 = 3 tenths off = 30%. The JFT reading section uses exactly this kind of price-sign arithmetic.
3. You want to try on a shirt. You ask:
試着 = trying on + てもいいですか = "may I…?" (N5 Lesson 15). The others heat your bento, refuse a bag, and exchange money — all useful, none in the fitting room.
Study the grammar behind this situation
- N5 Lesson 3: prices — いくらですか and reading big numbers
- N5 Lesson 11: counters — buying two of anything, correctly
- Counting guide — yen amounts without finger-counting
More situation guides
- Japanese at the Hospital and Clinic
- Japanese at the City Hall (市役所)
- Japanese at the Workplace
- Japanese at the Train Station
- Japanese for Emergencies
Written by Rahul Kumar Singh. Published 17 July 2026. All dialogues and example sentences are original. Vocabulary readings are checked against standard dictionaries — if you spot an error, report it and I will fix it.