Making and Receiving a Business Call

In this lesson you will learn how to make and receive business telephone calls in Japanese. You will practice answering the phone by identifying your office, calling an office and requesting an extension number or department, and using the polite expressions expected in business phone calls. Japanese business telephone etiquette is more formal than home calls, so this lesson builds on Unit 26 with additional honorific language.

スミスですが、田中さん、お願いします。 — Sumisu desu ga, Tanaka-san, onegaishimasu. — “This is Smith; may I speak to Mr. Tanaka?”

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Dialogues (会話)

Situation 1 — Ms. Lawrence answers a call at the visa section

Romaji	English
Roorensu: Sashoo-ka de gozaimasu.	Visa Section.
Watanabe: Horuto-san onegaishimasu.	May I speak to Mr. Holt?
Roorensu: Shitsuree desu ga, donata desu ka?	May I ask who is calling?
Watanabe: Nihon Ryokoo no Watanabe desu ga…	This is Mr. Watanabe of Japan Travel.
Roorensu: Shooshoo omachi kudasai.	Please wait a moment.

Situation 2 — Ms. Carroll calls her friend Ms. Suzuki at Nihon Camera

Romaji	English
Kookanshu: Nihon Kamera de gozaimasu.	This is Nihon Camera.
Kyaroru: Naisen 521 onegaishimasu.	Extension 521, please.
Kookanshu: Shooshoo omachi kudasai.	Hold on a moment, please.
Nihonjin: Jinji-ka desu.	Personnel.
Kyaroru: Amerika Taishikan no Kyaroru desu ga, Suzuki-san onegaishimasu.	I’m Carroll of the American Embassy. May I speak to Ms. Suzuki?
Nihonjin: Shooshoo omachi kudasai.	Please wait a moment.

Situation 3 — Mr. Simmons calls Mr. Sato at Yamada Industries

Romaji	English
Kookanshu: Ohayoo gozaimasu. Yamada Koogyoo de gozaimasu.	Good morning. This is Yamada Industries.
Shimonzu: Amerika Ryoojikan no Shimonzu desu ga, eegyoo-ka no Sato-san onegaishimasu.	I’m Simmons of the American Consulate. May I speak to Mr. Sato of the sales department?
Kookanshu: Otsunagi shimasu. Shooshoo omachi kudasai.	I’ll connect you. Please wait a moment.

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Key Vocabulary (語彙)

Office Sections and Departments

Romaji	Kana	English
sashoo-ka	さしょうか	visa section
jinji-ka	じんじか	personnel section
eegyoo-ka	えいぎょうか	sales department
seeji-bu	せいじぶ	political section
keezai-bu	けいざいぶ	economics section
gyoosee-bu	ぎょうせいぶ	administrative section
ryooji-bu	りょうじぶ	consular section
keeri-ka	けいりか	accounting section
soomu-bu	そうむぶ	department of general affairs

Business Titles

Romaji	Kana	English
shachoo	しゃちょう	president (company head)
buchoo	ぶちょう	department head
kachoo	かちょう	division chief
kakarichoo	かかりちょう	section chief

Telephone Terms

Romaji	Kana	English
naisen	ないせん	extension (telephone)
kookanshu	こうかんしゅ	switchboard operator
otsunagi shimasu	おつなぎします	I’ll connect you (deferential)
onegaishimasu	おねがいします	please (requesting a person/thing)

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Grammar & Usage Notes

1. Calling a business office

When you call a company, the operator answers with a greeting and the company name:

Ohayoo gozaimasu. (Company name) de gozaimasu. — “Good morning. This is (company).”

If you know the extension, say: Naisen (number) onegaishimasu. — “Extension (number), please.”

If you don’t have the extension, give the department name: (department)-ka / -bu onegaishimasu. — “(Department), please.”

2. Onegaishimasu vs. kudasai

When requesting a person, extension, or department on the phone, only onegaishimasu is appropriate — not kudasai. The word kudasai (without a verb in front) is normally used when asking someone to give you a concrete object. For abstract requests like connecting a call, always use onegaishimasu.

3. Using titles when asking for someone

Japanese callers typically use the person’s title after their name:

Tanaka-kachoo onegaishimasu. — “Division Chief Tanaka, please.”

This helps when an office has multiple people with the same common name. You can also use the title alone with -san: Kachoo-san onegaishimasu. — “The division chief, please.” Adding -san after the title makes it softer and more polite.

4. Answering calls in your office

When answering the phone on behalf of your office, use the very polite de gozaimasu:

(Office name) de gozaimasu. — “This is (office name).”

Use Shooshoo omachi kudasai (not the casual Chotto matte kudasai) since you are representing your office.

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Practice Exercises (練習)

A. Word Study — Business Titles

Match the following titles with their English equivalents:

Romaji	English
shachoo	president
buchoo	department head
kachoo	division head
kakarichoo	section chief

The character 長 (choo) means “head” or “chief.” A bu is larger than a ka, which is larger than a kakari.

B. Production — Calling and asking for a person

Call an office and ask for a person from the list. Identify yourself by workplace and name.

#	Your workplace	Ask for
1	American Consulate	Yamashita-buchoo
2	American Center	Okazaki-san
3	American Embassy	Miyama-kachoo
4	American Center	Nakajima-buchoo
5	American Consulate	Nakajima-buchoo
6	American Embassy	Yamada-kakarichoo

C. Department Names — Substitution Drill

Practice identifying sections using de gozaimasu:

Cue	Response
political section	Seeji-bu de gozaimasu.
administrative section	Gyoosee-bu de gozaimasu.
visa section	Sashoo-ka de gozaimasu.
economics section	Keezai-bu de gozaimasu.
consular section	Ryooji-bu de gozaimasu.

D. Production — Asking for a person by department

The instructor answers as a company operator. Ask for the person by name and department.

Company	Person	Title	Department
Pan American Airlines	Matsumoto	kachoo	Personnel (jinji-ka)
Nihon Hoken	Ogawa	buchoo	Sales (eegyoo-ka)
Koodansha	Nakanishi	kachoo	Accounting (keeri-ka)
Tokyo Koogyoo	Nakada	—	Personnel (jinji-ka)
Fuji Computer	Urata	buchoo	General Affairs (soomu-bu)

E. Translation Exercise

Translate the following into Japanese:

1. “Extension 397, please.” → “Please wait a moment.” → “Personnel Division.” → “I’m (name) from the American Embassy. May I speak to Mr. Murakami?”
2. “Hello. Is this the accounting section?” → “Yes, it is.” → “May I speak to (B’s name)?” → “Speaking.”
3. “May I speak to Mr. Kitamura?” → “Who is calling, please?” → “I’m (name) from the American Embassy.”

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Cultural Notes

Business telephone etiquette

Japanese business calls are noticeably more formal than personal calls. The operator greets with the time-appropriate greeting (Ohayoo gozaimasu in the morning) followed by the company name using de gozaimasu rather than desu. Callers are expected to identify both their company and name before asking for the person they want. This avoids the need for the receptionist to ask Shitsuree desu ga, donata desu ka? (“May I ask who is calling?”). The word biza (ビザ) is the general loanword for “visa,” while sashoo (査証) is the formal Japanese term used in official contexts such as the visa section of an embassy.