【どうも・dōmo】magic word

どうも・dōmo = is truly a magic word.

You can use this to say:

Root of this word is something like "I don't know how to say it or what to say it".

It's vague and that's why you can use this for so many occasions.

You hear 「どうも・dōmo」very often everywhere you go in Japan. It is casual and abbreviated, but you can use this with almost everybody.

Hi!

Grace

あ、けいこさん、こんにちは！
(A, Keiko-san, konnichiwa!)

(Oh, Keiko, hello!)

あら、グレイスさん、どうも！おげんきですか？
(Ara, Grace-san, dōmo! ogenki desuka?)

Keiko

(Ah, Grace, hi! How are you?)

Thanks

Grace

これ、ためしてみますか？
(kore, tamesite mimasuka?)

(Do you want to try this?)

あ、はい、どうも！
(A, hai, dōmo!)

Keiko

(Ah, yes, thanks!)

A tip

It's fine to use "Dōmo" for casual "Hi" and "Nice to meet you", however, to mean "thanks", it's always nicer to say "ありがとう・Arigatō".

You can say "どうもありがとう・dōmo arigatō" to mean "Thank you very much".

Let's learn Japanese!