Japanese Grammar Bank

HOW TO SAY SHOULD IN JAPANESE

Today we will study an essential component of the language, how to say “should” in Japanese.

Japanese has a few ways to say “should”, and by the end of this lesson you should be able to distinguish between them all.

SHOULD IN JAPANESE WITH はず

はず (hazu) is used to express things that should (supposed to) be or should’ve been.

It’s not used to describe things someone should do, like, “You should go to England.” See the later, べき and 方がいい chapters for that use.

Use はず (hazu) like a noun to modify the thing that is expected.

PATTERN

Noun / Adjective / Verb + はず

JAPANESEROMAJIENGLISH
休日のはず (noun)kyuujitsu no hazu.It should be (is supposed to be) my day off.
静かなはず (na-adjective)shizuka na hazu.It should be (is supposed to be) quiet here.
赤ちゃんは可愛いはず (i-adjective)akachan wa kawaii hazu.The baby should be (is supposed to be) cute.
行くはず (verb)iku hazu.I should be (am supposed to be) going.

NOTE || If you want to make it negative you add はずがない (hazuganai). You DO NOT make the verb or thing itself negative and then add はず (hazu). A common mistake made by Japanese learners. 

SHOULD IN JAPANESE WITH べき

べき (beki) means “should” as in, “You should do ____.”

But it comes across as very bossy and know-it-all. For this reason, it’s rarely used to give someone advice.

It’s mostly used when referring to yourself because it doesn’t matter if you’re bossy then, or when you are talking about neutral things. 

The use of べき is very simple. You just add it to the verb that should be done, and conjugate it as a verb to negate it.

NOTE || For する (suru), the べき form is すべき (subeki) rather than するべき (suru beki).

PATTERN

Verb + べき

View Sentence Examples:
JAPANESEROMAJIENGLISH
妊娠を希望する前に、経済的な余裕があるかどうかを考えるべき。ninshin wo kibou suru mae ni, Keizai tekina yoyu ga aru ka dou ka wo kangaeru beki.Before choosing to try for a baby, one should think about whether they can afford it or not.
お客様に敬語を使うべきです。okyaku sama ni keigo wo tsukau beki desu.One should use polite language with customers.
インフルエンザになったら、ほかの人のためにも会社を休むべきだと思います。infuruenza ni nattara, hoka no hito no tame nimo kaisha wo yasumu beki da to omimasu.If one has the flu, one should take time off work for the sake of others.

SHOULD IN JAPANESE WITH 方がいい

方がいい (hou ga ii) is used when you’re giving someone advice or telling them what to do. It literally translates to, “it’s better to do ___”, so it has quite a soft nuance. 

方がいい is put after a verb in the た ta form. A few common verbs are shown below.

PATTERN

Verb + 方がいい

Do する
suru		 した方がいい
shita hou ga ii
Drink 飲む
nomu		 飲んだ方がいい
nonda hou ga ii
Eat 食べる
taberu		 食べた方がいい
tabeta hou ga ii
Go 行く
iku		 行った方がいい
itta hou ga ii

If you want to use this in the negative, you can add it after the negative form of the verb.

Here are some example sentences:

JAPANESEROMAJIENGLISH
鬼滅の刃を読んだ方がいい。kimetsu no Yaiba wo yonda hou ga ii.You should read Demon Slayer.
アメリカに行った方がいい。merika ni itta hou ga ii.You should go to America.
チョコレートは毎日食べない方がいい。chokore-to wa mainichi tabenai hou ga ii.You shouldn’t eat chocolate every day.

NOTE || It’s very common to add と思う(to omou) after 方がいい (hou ga ii).

It doesn’t really change the meaning too much but living in Japan I hear it all the time. For example, “You should eat this cake” vs “I think you should eat this cake.”

SHOULD WITH (是非)みてください

(是非) みてください

(zehi) mite kudasai

This form simply means “Please try it.”

Put 是非 (zehi) at the start of the sentence and add みてください (mite kudasai) to the て te form of a verb to make this structure.

PATTERN

Verb + 方がいい

Note from author:

In my years as a Japanese translator, I think it’s baffling that this isn’t always taught as a form of “should” because in everyday language this is often the best choice. Let’s take the previous example of “You should go to America.”

Using した方がいい (shita hou ga ii) does work well here, but you could also say it as “Please try to go to America if you have the chance.” Notice how it might not be a direct translation, but it works for almost the same function.

Look at some examples below to get the general gist.

JAPANESEROMAJIENGLISH
是非アメリカに行ってみてください。zehi Amerika ni itte mite kudasai.You should go to America. (Please try to go to America)
是非納豆を食べてみてください。zehi natto wo tabete mite kudasai.You should try natto. (Please try to eat natto)
是非やってみてください。zehi yatte mite kudasai.You should do it. (Please try to do it)

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FAQs

How to say Should in Japanese?

There are a few ways to say Should in Japanese.

1) はず (hazu) is used to express things that should (supposed to) be or should’ve been:

休日のはず (kyuujitsu no hazu.) | It should be (is supposed to be) my day off.

2) べき (beki) means “should” as in, “You should do ____.”

But it comes across as very bossy and know-it-all. For this reason, it’s rarely used to give someone advice.

お客様に敬語を使うべきです。okyaku sama ni keigo wo tsukau beki desu. || One should use polite language with customers.

3) 方がいい (hou ga ii) is used when you’re giving someone advice or telling them what to do. 

鬼滅の刃を読んだ方がいい。kimetsu no Yaiba wo yonda hou ga ii. || You should read Demon Slayer.

What is the difference between べき and はず?

べき is for neutral things. Think of it as “one should” in, “One should think about whether you need a new car before buying one.”

はず is for things that are supposed to be. Use for things you expect to happen or be the case.

What is 方がいい used for?

方がいい is used to give direct advice and opinions.

It literally translates to, “it’s better to do ___”, so it has quite a soft nuance. 

What are the Japanese location particles?

The Japanese location particles are に ni and で de.

に is used for the state of existing or being somewhere.

に is also used for time, helping set the scene of a verb.

で is used to mark the location of an action.

How to express can’t help but in Japanese?

ずにはいられない (zu ni ha irarenai) means can’t help but in Japanese.

Simply:

– take the ない nai form of a verb,

– take off the ない nai,

– stick on ずにはいられない zu ni ha irarenai

– and you’re there!

The ず zu form is used in writing, but in speaking we’d say ないではいられない nai de ha irarenai.

Examples:

子供を気の毒に思わずにはいられなかったのだ。

Kodomo wo ki no doku ni omowazu ni ha irarenakatta no da.

I couldn’t help but feel sorry for the children.

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