Takashi's Japanese Dictionary

A blog for learning Japanese that introduces Japanese slang words and Idioms!

  • Home
  • Dictionary Tools ▾
    • Furigana and Definition Lookup
    • Japanese Synonym Finder
    • Katakana Word Converter
  • Blog Posts ▾
    • Latest Posts
    • Phrases by Topic
    • Slang
    • Idiom
    • Column
    • Grammar
    • 英語に関する記事 (in Japanese)
  • Lesson Slides ▾
    • For Complete Beginners
    • For Intermediate/Advanced Learners
  • Vocab List
  • What’s New
  • Social Media
  • About
You are here: Home / Slang / あけおめ (Akeome): Casual Japanese New Year’s Greeting

あけおめ (Akeome): Casual Japanese New Year’s Greeting

January 1, 2019

Table of Contents

  • Definition of あけおめ (Akeome)
  • Polite Form of akeome
  • Meaning of ことよろ (kotoyoro)
  • Other Japanese New-Year Vocab/Culture
    • 20 Japanese Words and Culture for Christmas and New Year
    • Superstition about 初夢 (Hatsuyume, “New Year’s First Dream”) in Japan
  • Example Sentences

Definition of あけおめ (Akeome)

あけおめ (akeome) means “Happy New Year”, a casual Japanese New Year’s greeting. It is casually used by young people when they meet their friends in early January. When your friends greet you using this phrase, you can reply to them by repeating the same phrase; but when they are much older than you, you should use the polite form あけましておめでとうございます (akemashite omedetou gozaimasu) as explained below.

Polite Form of akeome

あけおめ is an abbreviation of “明あけましておめでとうございます” (akemashite omedetou gozaimasu), which sounds more polite and formal than the abbreviated phrase. This expression consists of the two parts “明あけまして” and “おめでとうございます”. The former is a polite te-form of the verb “明あける” meaning “(something) ends and turns into a new state”*, and the latter means “congratulations”. Therefore, the phrase literally means “(The last year) has ended and turned into a new year, congratulations!”. Since あけおめ is a casual way of saying “明けましておめでとうございます”, you should use the original expression in a formal situation.

* 明ける is a rare word used only in a few phrases, including “夜よるが明ける” meaning “night is over” and ”梅雨つゆが明ける” meaning “rainy season is over”.

Meaning of ことよろ (kotoyoro)

Some people go on to say “ことよろ (kotoyoro)” after akeome,  which abbreviates “今年(ことし)もよろしくお願(ねが)いします” (kotoshi mo yoroshiku onegai shimasu) and means “This year too, let’s get along well with each other”. The latter phrase “よろしくお願いします” is a very common phrase in Japan, which is often used when you ask someone to do something, or when you show your willingness to build/keep a good relationship with someone (in this case, you’re sort of asking them to have a good relationship with you).

As in akeome, you should use the original expression “今年もよろしくお願いします” in a formal situation (e.g. when you greet someone older than you) rather than its abbreviation. Also, note that kotoyoro sounds more casual and younger than akeome and therefore is predominantly used among teenagers.

Other Japanese New-Year Vocab/Culture

20 Japanese Words and Culture for Christmas and New Year

Japanese New Year Traditions, Greetings and Key Words

Superstition about 初夢 (Hatsuyume, “New Year’s First Dream”) in Japan

Hatsuyume: Japanese Superstition about New Year’s Dream

 

Example Sentences

Ex1
あけましておめでとうございます。今年ことしもよろしくお願ねがいします
Happy New Year!  And this year too, let’s get along well with each other.

Ex2 (A casual version of Ex1)
あけおめ!今年もよろしく!

Ex2 (A more casual version of Ex1)
あけおめ!ことよろ!

Synonyms: 明あけましておめでとうございます
Synonyms in English: Happy New Year
Related words and phrases: 明あける (be over) おめでとう (congratulations), よろしく

Filed Under: Slang

Related Posts

  • 7 Ways to Say or Write よろしく (yoroshiku) in Japanese

    7 Ways to Say or Write よろしく (yoroshiku) in Japanese

  • “Nominication”: Japanese (Old) Drinking Culture After Work

    “Nominication”: Japanese (Old) Drinking Culture After Work

  • Real and Unknown Meanings of “Hentai” in Japanese

  • Meaning of ぼっち (Bocchi) and クリぼっち (Kuri Bocchi) in Japanese Slang

  • 11 Bizarre Japanese Slangs Untranslatable Into English

Featured Posts:

  • Japanese Conversation Practice to Master 気-related Idioms
  • “Gakkī Loss”: Meaning of ロス (“Loss”) in Japanese
  • 30+ Japanese Words for “Very”: Synonyms of とても (totemo)
  • 40 Ways of Saying "Many" in Japanese (Ooi, Ippai, Takusan, and More...)
  • 8 Funny and Cute Japanese Cat Idioms
  • Success Story of Ichiro Suzuki: What He Means to Japanese Baseball Fans

Popular Posts:

  • “The moon is beautiful, isn’t it?” Could Mean “I love You” in Japanese
  • Meaning of 卍 (manji) and マジ卍 (Maji manji) in Japanese
  • Funny Japanese Gaming Slang Terms
  • Meaning of Kenja Time (賢者タイム, kenjataimu) in Japanese Slang
  • Boku, Ore, Watashi, Atashi: 15 Japanese Person Pronouns
  • 4 Meanings of ノリ (Nori) in Japanese Slang
  • Meaning of ぼっち (Bocchi) and クリぼっち (Kuri Bocchi) in Japanese Slang
  • Meaning and Difference of ガチ (gachi) and マジ (maji) in Japanese
  • 5 Meanings of ペラペラ (pera pera) in Japanese
  • なんでやねん (nandeyanen): Meaning and Usage
  • 凸, 凹, 〆, 卍: Meaning of Weird and Funny Japanese Kanji
  • 40 Japanese Words Meaning “Many/Much” (Ooi, Ippai, Takusan, …)
  • 40 Funny Old Japanese Slang Words to Sound like Oyaji (Old Men)
  • 50 Japanese Words and Idioms about Love & Relationship
  • とにかく (Tonikaku) Means More Than “Anyway”
  • List of Similar and Confusing Kanji With Different Meanings
  • 9 Essential Kansai Dialect (Kansai-ben) Words and Phrases
  • Japanese Slang 帰宅部 (kitaku bu) Meaning ‘Go-Home Club’
  • Japanese and English Words that Rhyme in Both Languages
  • Japanese Wasei-Eigo List (“Japlish”) and Their Meanings
  • Meaning of “Paper Driver” in Japlish (Japanese English)
  • Meaning of Kaedama, Menkata and Barikata of Ramen Noodles
  • 闇鍋 (yaminabe): Meaning “Dark Hot Pot” with Random Ingredients
  • Essential Grammar in Kansai Dialect (関西弁, Kansai ben)
  • 30+ Japanese Words for “Very” and Their Nuances
  • Meaning of あかん (akan), the Essential Kansai-Dialect Word
  • Meaning of 相合傘 (ai ai gasa): Lovely Dream of Japanese Kids
  • List of Japanese Abbreviated Words and Phrases
  • Meaning of “Three-Day Monk” (三日坊主, mikka bouzu) in Japanese
  • ヤンキー (yankee) Means “(Old-Fashioned) Loutish Youths” in Japanese

Search on Takashionary
(e.g. 'food', 'cat', 'idiom')

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

ブログランキング・にほんブログ村へPVアクセスランキング にほんブログ村

Search on Takashionary
(e.g. 'food', 'cat', 'idiom')

Trending Posts

  • “The moon is beautiful, isn’t it?” Could Mean “I love You” in Japanese
  • Meaning of 卍 (manji) and マジ卍 (Maji manji) in Japanese
  • Meaning of ぼっち (Bocchi) and クリぼっち (Kuri Bocchi) in Japanese Slang
  • 4 Meanings of ノリ (Nori) in Japanese Slang
  • Boku, Ore, Watashi, Atashi: 15 Japanese Person Pronouns
  • Funny Japanese Gaming Slang Terms
  • 5 Meanings of 気 (ki) and 30 気-related Japanese Phrases
  • List of Similar and Confusing Kanji With Different Meanings
  • Essential Grammar in Kansai Dialect (関西弁, Kansai ben)
  • 50 Japanese Words and Idioms about Love & Relationship
  • Real and Unknown Meanings of “Hentai” in Japanese
  • 40 Japanese Words Meaning “Many/Much” (Ooi, Ippai, Takusan, …)
  • Meaning and Difference of ガチ (gachi) and マジ (maji) in Japanese
  • 5 Meanings of ペラペラ (pera pera) in Japanese
  • 凸, 凹, 〆, 卍: Meaning of Weird and Funny Japanese Kanji
  • 30+ Japanese Words for “Very” and Their Nuances
  • Japanese Slang 帰宅部 (kitaku bu) Meaning ‘Go-Home Club’
  • Meaning of Kenja Time (賢者タイム, kenjataimu) in Japanese Slang
  • List of Confusing “Japlish/Janglish” (Japanese English)
  • Meaning of Kaedama, Menkata and Barikata of Ramen Noodles
  • Meaning of あかん (akan), the Essential Kansai-Dialect Word
  • 9 Essential Kansai Dialect (Kansai-ben) Words and Phrases
  • List of Japanese Abbreviated Words and Phrases
  • What’s 合コン (gōkon) and 街コン (machikon) in Japanese
  • なんでやねん (nandeyanen): Meaning and Usage
  • 40 Funny Old Japanese Slang Words to Sound like Oyaji (Old Men)
  • List of 50+ Japanese Words to Describe Personality
  • 20 Japanese Twitter Slang Words in 2010s/2020s
  • ヤンキー (yankee) Means “(Old-Fashioned) Loutish Youths” in Japanese
  • Meaning of 相合傘 (ai ai gasa): Lovely Dream of Japanese Kids

Popular Posts

  • “The moon is beautiful, isn’t it?” Could Mean “I love You” in Japanese
  • 9 Essential Kansai Dialect (Kansai-ben) Words and Phrases
  • Boku, Ore, Watashi, Atashi: 15 Japanese Person Pronouns
  • 40 Funny Old Japanese Slang Words to Sound like Oyaji (Old Men)
  • Meaning of Kaedama, Menkata and Barikata of Ramen Noodles
  • Meaning of Kenja Time (賢者タイム, kenjataimu) in Japanese Slang
  • 30+ Essential Japanese Words to Describe Food
  • 4 Meanings of ノリ (Nori) in Japanese Slang
  • Meaning and Difference of ガチ (gachi) and マジ (maji) in Japanese
  • 十八番 (ohako) Meaning “The Song You Sing Best”

Words by Theme

  • 9 Essential Kansai Dialect (Kansai-ben) Words and Phrases
  • Boku, Ore, Watashi, Atashi: 15 Japanese Person Pronouns
  • 40 Funny Old Japanese Slang Words to Sound like Oyaji (Old Men)

Idiom

  • 十八番 (ohako) Meaning “The Song You Sing Best”
  • How The Japanese Word 神 (Kami, ‘God’) Is Used Metaphorically
  • Japanese Idiom “Put on a Cat”, 猫をかぶる (neko wo kaburu)

Japlish

  • 深夜テンション (shinya tension) Meaning “Midnight High” in Japanese Slang
  • Japanese Wasei-Eigo List (“Japlish”) and Their Meanings
  • Meaning of “Paper Driver” in Japlish (Japanese English)

Slang

  • 女たらし (onna tarashi) Meaning ‘Lady’s Man’ in Japanese
  • Toka, Kana, Kamo: Japanese Vague Expressions
  • Japanese “活 Words”: 婚活 (Konkatsu), 就活/終活 (Shūkatsu)

Column

  • “The moon is beautiful, isn’t it?” Could Mean “I love You” in Japanese
  • イチロー (Ichiro): What He Means to Japanese Baseball Fans
  • Meaning of 遠慮 (enryo) and 空気を読む (kuuki wo yomu)

Grammar

  • Essential Grammar in Kansai Dialect (関西弁, Kansai ben)
  • Slang Meaning of 全然 (Zenzen) Without ない (Nai)
  • Ageru, Kureru, and Morau: Meaning, Grammar and Difference

日本語記事

  • 韻を踏むお茶目な英語表現、単語、フレーズ、イディオム30+
  • 頭に情景が浮かぶ面白い英語フレーズ、イディオム30+
  • many, much, a lot ofの類語、 言い換え英語表現50+の使い分け
  • 直訳すると変な英語表現、イディオム12
  • 「開き直る」の2つの意味と英訳

Categories

Copyright © 2023 · All Rights Reserved