The five types of keigo
Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs divides keigo into five types in its 2007 guideline 「敬語の指針」. The converter labels every change with one of them.
尊敬語
Honorific · sonkeigo
Raises the person you are talking to or about by describing their actions with special verbs or お〜になる.
部長がいらっしゃいます。
The manager is coming.
謙譲語Ⅰ
Humble I · kenjōgo I
Lowers your own action to raise the person it is directed at: 伺う, 申し上げる, お〜する.
明日、御社に伺います。
I will visit your company tomorrow.
謙譲語Ⅱ（丁重語）
Humble II · kenjōgo II / teichōgo
Describes your own actions courteously towards the listener, whether or not anyone receives them: 参る, 申す, いたす, おる.
週末は京都へ参ります。
I'm going to Kyoto this weekend.
丁寧語
Polite · teineigo
The basic polite style: です, ます, and the more formal ございます.
会議は三時からです。
The meeting starts at three.
美化語
Refined · bikago
Adds お or ご to make everyday words sound refined, without raising anyone.
お茶をどうぞ。
Please have some tea.
Keigo verb chart
The verbs that change form completely in keigo. Add 〜ます to any of them for spoken politeness.
| Plain | Meaning | Honorific 尊敬語 (their action) | Humble 謙譲語 (your action) |
|---|---|---|---|
| いるiru | to be (people) | いらっしゃる、おいでになる | おるⅡ |
| 行くiku | to go | いらっしゃる、おいでになる | 伺うⅠ、参るⅡ |
| 来るkuru | to come | いらっしゃる、お越しになる、お見えになる | 参るⅡ |
| 言うiu | to say | おっしゃる | 申し上げるⅠ、申すⅡ |
| するsuru | to do | なさる | いたすⅡ |
| 見るmiru | to see | ご覧になる | 拝見するⅠ |
| 見せるmiseru | to show | お見せになる | お目にかけるⅠ、ご覧に入れるⅠ |
| 食べる・飲むtaberu / nomu | to eat / drink | 召し上がる | いただく |
| 知っているshitte iru | to know | ご存じだ | 存じ上げているⅠ、存じているⅡ |
| 思うomou | to think | お思いになる | 存じるⅡ |
| 会うau | to meet | お会いになる | お目にかかるⅠ |
| 聞くkiku | to ask / hear | お聞きになる | 伺うⅠ、拝聴するⅠ |
| 訪ねるtazuneru | to visit | いらっしゃる、お訪ねになる | 伺うⅠ |
| あげるageru | to give (to them) | — | 差し上げるⅠ |
| くれるkureru | to give (to me) | くださる | — |
| もらうmorau | to receive | お受け取りになる | いただくⅠ、頂戴するⅠ |
| 読むyomu | to read | お読みになる | 拝読するⅠ |
| 借りるkariru | to borrow | お借りになる | 拝借するⅠ、お借りするⅠ |
| 待つmatsu | to wait | お待ちになる | お待ちするⅠ |
| 着るkiru | to wear | お召しになる | — |
| 寝るneru | to sleep | お休みになる | — |
| 座るsuwaru | to sit | おかけになる | — |
| あるaru | to exist (things) | Polite form: ござる | — |
Ⅰ = 謙譲語Ⅰ (raises the person your action is aimed at), Ⅱ = 謙譲語Ⅱ / 丁重語 (courteous to the listener), as classified in 敬語の指針.
Common keigo mistakes the converter catches
Double keigo (二重敬語)
部長がおっしゃられました。
部長がおっしゃいました。
おっしゃる is already honorific. Adding 〜られる stacks a second honorific on top.
Humble verb for someone else's action
お客様が参られました。
お客様がいらっしゃいました。
参る is humble: use it only for yourself or your own side, never for a customer or superior.
Humble request form
こちらでお待ちしてください。
こちらでお待ちください。
お〜する is humble. When asking someone to do something, use the honorific お〜ください.
Treating your own boss as an outsider
（to a client）田中部長はいらっしゃいません。
（to a client）部長の田中はおりません。
To someone outside your company, your own boss is part of your side: drop the title after the name and use humble forms.
“Part-time-job keigo” (バイト敬語)
ご注文は以上でよろしかったでしょうか。
ご注文は以上でよろしいでしょうか。
The past tense よろしかった is a habit from shop talk, widely considered incorrect for a question about now.
How the converter works
- You choose who you are talking to and the format. Keigo depends on that: the same verb becomes honorific for a client's action and humble for yours.
- An AI model rewrites the text following the rules of the official guideline 「敬語の指針」 (Agency for Cultural Affairs, 2007) and labels every change with its keigo type.
- Fixed rules then check the result for known errors: double keigo, humble verbs used for other people, バイト敬語 and ら抜き言葉. Anything they find is shown as a warning, never hidden.
- Before each release the converter is tested against a set of example sentences covering every combination of listener, format and politeness.
Keigo also depends on things the converter cannot see, such as your relationship history or your company's own customs. It never adds greetings or closing lines you didn't write; for a full business email you may still want お世話になっております and よろしくお願いいたします.
Frequently asked questions
What is keigo?
Keigo (敬語) is the system of respectful language in Japanese. You raise the other person with honorific forms (尊敬語), lower your own actions with humble forms (謙譲語), and keep the whole sentence polite with です and ます (丁寧語).
What's the difference between sonkeigo and kenjōgo?
It depends on who does the action. Use sonkeigo (尊敬語) for the actions of the person you respect: 部長がいらっしゃる. Use kenjōgo (謙譲語) for your own actions, or your own side's: 私が伺う. Mixing them up is the most common keigo mistake.
Is です・ます enough, or do I need full keigo?
です・ます (teineigo) is fine with colleagues, teachers in casual settings and people you've just met. With clients, senior managers and in formal emails, business keigo is expected. Pick “Polite” or “Business keigo” in the converter to get either.
Can I paste English?
No. The converter turns casual Japanese into keigo; it doesn't translate. Write your message in plain Japanese first (mistakes are fine) and it will fix the grammar and politeness together.
Why does the result depend on who I'm talking to?
Keigo is relative. Talking to your boss, you use honorifics for your boss. Talking to a client, your boss becomes part of your own side, so you use humble forms for them instead: 部長の田中が申しておりました.
Is the converter free?
Yes. You get 3 free conversions a day without an account and 5 when signed in. VIP members of Japanese Grammar Checker get unlimited conversions.
Can I rely on it for important emails?
It is built to be accurate and shows exactly what it changed and why, but keigo depends on context it cannot see. For important messages, read the explanation of each change and adjust if your situation differs.
Sources
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