いいえ

Japanese

Alternative forms
  • (usually in repetition) いえ (ie)

Etymology

/ina/ → /ija/ → /ije/ → /iːe/

First cited to the late 1600s.[1]

Shift from いや (iya), from even earlier 否 (ina). While いや (iya) was broadly used in the Muromachi period, in the Edo period, いや (iya) shifted to use mainly in informal or more intimate contexts, while いいえ (īe) was used in more formal or polite contexts. いや (iya) is still in use, including broader senses not included for いいえ (īe).[1]

Pronunciation

Interjection

いいえ • (īe) 

  1. no
    「東(とう)京(きょう)出(しゅっ)身(しん)ですか。」「いいえ、大(おお)阪(さか)出(しゅっ)身(しん)です。」
    “Tōkyō shusshin desu ka.”“Īe, Ōsaka shusshin desu.”
    "Are you from Tokyo?" "No, I am from Osaka."
  2. yes (in response to negative questions), disagree
    今日(きょう)は雨(あめ)だから、ピクニックには行(い)けませんね？いいえ、雨(あま)ガッパを着(き)れば行(い)けます。
    Kyō wa ame da kara, pikunikku ni wa ikemasen ne? Īe, amagappa o kireba ikemasu.
    It's raining today so we can't go on a picnic? Yes, we can go, if we wear raincoats.
  3. Response to words of gratitude.
    「ありがとうございます。」「いいえ、どういたしまして。」
    “Arigatō gozaimasu.”“Īe, dō itashimashite.”
    "Thank you." "My pleasure."
    「あ、どうも。」「いえいえ、こちらこそ。」
    “A, dōmo.”“Ieie, kochira koso.”
    "Oh, thanks." "Not at all, I should thank you."

Usage notes

May be considered overly direct. Use of simple declaratives is also possible, such as 違(ちが)います (chigaimasu, “it's different / that's incorrect”).

Synonyms

Antonyms

See also

References
  1. Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
  2. Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  3. Kindaichi, Kyōsuke et al., editors (1974), 新明解国語辞典 [Shin Meikai Kokugo Jiten] (in Japanese), Second edition, Tōkyō: Sanseidō
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