How to Say ‘Explain (it), please. (casual request form)’ in Japanese
説明して
setsumei shi te
[setsu-may shee teh]
💬 Usage Tip: [説明して] is the [て] form of [説明する]. This form is used for casual requests, and it also connects to helper patterns like [説明してもらえますか。]
🇯🇵 In Japan: By itself, [説明して] is pretty direct and casual. It fits with close coworkers, but with a senior coworker you'd usually soften it.
Phrase Breakdown
説明
setsumei
[setsu-may]
explanation / description
名詞「説明」。依頼の形では「説明して」= Explain (it), please/for me. などになります。
説明してくれてありがとう。
Thanks for explaining.
し
shi
[shee]
do (stem of する)
「する」の連用形（し）。「して」「しない」「します」などの形を作ります。
ゆっくり説明しませんか。
Could you explain slowly?
て
te
[teh]
-te form ending
「て」= て形の語尾。依頼（〜てください）、連結、進行（〜ている）などに使います。ここでは「して」= do/explain (and…).
もう少し説明して。
Explain a bit more.
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