Japanese suffixes are the little endings that attach to names, nouns, and even adjectives – and they carry a surprising amount of social weight. Whether you’re adding さん to a colleague’s name or っぽい to describe something ‘ish’, these small building blocks shape how natural and respectful your Japanese sounds.
This list hands you around 45 of the most common Japanese suffixes you’ll meet in everyday conversations, from the polite staples to the casual and descriptive ones. It’s not a dusty textbook collection – we focused on the suffixes that show up in real chats, anime, and messages with friends.
Each entry gives you a clear meaning and a practical example sentence, so you can see exactly how the suffix behaves in a Japanese sentence. When you’re ready to study offline, grab the free PDF using the download button right below the table.
Use this list as a starting point, then keep going in the Yak Yacker Japanese section for more words, phrases, and study-friendly reference pages.
Quick Quiz
Think you can already spot the difference between ちゃん and 様? Give the quick vocabulary quiz a go – no pressure, just a friendly way to see which suffixes have stuck.
Browse the Full List
| Word | Type | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ～がた | Honorific Plural Suffix | Respectful plural for people (e.g., あなたがた). |
| ～さ | suffix | Turns adjective into noun; -ness, -ity (e.g., 大きさ size) |
| ～たん | suffix | cute variant of ちゃん; shows extreme affection, often for babies or young girls |
| ～ちん | suffix | another cute variant of ちゃん; used similarly to たん |
| ～ども | Humble Plural Suffix | Humble plural for oneself or one's group (e.g., 私ども). |
| ～はん | suffix | Kansai dialect version of さん; respectful title |
| ～み | suffix | Noun-forming suffix for subjective qualities (e.g., 楽しみ enjoyment) |
| ～ら | Casual Plural Suffix | Plural marker for people (informal/neutral, e.g., 彼ら). |
| ～兄貴 | suffix | older brother; used for a respected senior male like 'bro' |
| ～博士 | Title Suffix | Dr. (for PhD holders, not medical doctors). |
| ～姉貴 | suffix | older sister; used for a respected senior female like 'sis' |
| ～教授 | suffix | professor; title for a university professor |
| ～目 | suffix | Ordinal suffix (e.g., second); also indicates point of view |
| ～社長 | Title Suffix | Company president (as title). |
| ～選手 | Title Suffix | Suffix for athletes/sports players. |
| いん | Suffix | member (e.g. kaishain = company employee) |
| か | Suffix | specialist; -ist (e.g. sakka = writer) |
| くん | suffix | honorific for boys or juniors |
| ご | suffix | language (e.g., 日本語 = Japanese language) |
| こ | Suffix | child; suffix for female given names (e.g. Hanako) |
| さま | suffix | very respectful honorific (like 'sir' or 'madam') |
| さん | suffix | Mr./Mrs./Ms. (polite honorific for names) |
| しゃ | Suffix | person; -er (e.g. isha = doctor) |
| たち | suffix | makes people plural (e.g., 私たち = we) |
| ちゃん | suffix | cute/familiar honorific (for children, friends, or pets) |
