Japanese - Preferences

Lesson 32 of 168

Two friends talking in Japanese about what they like — a lesson on preferences (好き／大好き／のほうが好き).

Goal: Say what you like, prefer, or can't stand — polite A2 phrases

Free Japanese lessons with guided practice, audio, and speaking support.

Welcome! In this short lesson you'll practice natural, polite ways to talk about likes and dislikes. Repeat the phrases out loud and try the mini-dialogue to hear them in a real exchange.

Level A2: In this lesson we'll practice common phrases for likes, dislikes, preferences, and favorites (好き／大好き／あまり好きじゃありません／のほうが好き). You'll learn how to say you like something, prefer one thing to another, ask others what they like, and express stronger or milder feelings. (CEFR-aligned)

After this lesson you'll be able to:

  • Use polite frames like 「___が好きです。」 and 「___が大好きです。」 to say what you like.
  • Ask someone about their likes with 「___は好きですか。」 and 「___と___、どちらが好きですか。」
  • Compare preferences with 「___のほうが、___より好きです。」 and say your favorite with 「一番好きな___は___です。」
  • Practice saying milder dislike politely with 「___はあまり好きじゃありません。」
A café scene in Japan where learners compare coffee and tea and say what they prefer.

Ready? Let's go!

When you tap play on phrases, we track your progress through this lesson.

1. Reading + Listening Practice

Hear core phrases, repeat aloud.

___が好きです。

___ ga suki desu.

I like ___.

Meaning: I like ___.

When to use: Use this polite frame to say you like a person, food, hobby, or thing. Put a noun in the blank (e.g., 猫が好きです。).

Tip: Beginners sometimes use は instead of が here; が marks the thing you like.

猫が好きです

Neko ga suki desu.

I like cats.
音楽が好きです。

Ongaku ga suki desu.

I like music.

___が大好きです。

___ ga daisuki desu.

I really like ___.

Meaning: I really like ___.

When to use: Use to show stronger liking than 好きです. Put a noun in the blank (例：寿司が大好きです).

寿司が大好きです。

Sushi ga daisuki desu.

I really like sushi.
日本が大好きです。

Nihon ga daisuki desu.

I love Japan.

___は好きじゃありません。

___ wa suki ja arimasen.

I don't like ___.

Meaning: I don't like ___.

When to use: Use this polite negative to say you don't like someone or something. Put a noun in the blank and use は for contrast or topic.

Tip: Don't confuse が and は — は highlights the topic or contrast in negative statements.

辛い食べ物は好きじゃありません。

Karai tabemono wa suki ja arimasen.

I don't like spicy food.
高いところは好きじゃありません。

Takai tokoro wa suki ja arimasen.

I don't like high places.

___はあまり好きじゃありません。

___ wa amari suki ja arimasen.

I'm not a big fan of ___.

Meaning: I'm not a big fan of ___.

When to use: Use this to soften dislike. It's less strong than '嫌いです' and polite in many conversations.

納豆はあまり好きじゃありません。

Nattō wa amari suki ja arimasen.

I'm not a big fan of natto.
雨の日はあまり好きじゃありません。

Ame no hi wa amari suki ja arimasen.

I'm not very fond of rainy days.

___のほうが好きです。

___ no hō ga suki desu.

I prefer ___.

Meaning: I prefer ___.

When to use: Use when comparing options informally: '___のほうが好きです' means you like that option more than another.

コーヒーのほうが好きです。

Kōhī no hō ga suki desu.

I prefer coffee.
夏のほうが好きです。

Natsu no hō ga suki desu.

I prefer summer.

___のほうが、___より好きです。

___ no hō ga, ___ yori suki desu.

I prefer ___ to ___.

Meaning: I prefer ___ to ___.

When to use: Use to compare two specific things: first blank is what you prefer, second blank is the comparison (___のほうが、___より好きです).

Tip: Make sure the preferred item comes first (___のほうが) and the compared item uses より.

犬のほうが、猫より好きです。

Inu no hō ga, neko yori suki desu.

I prefer dogs to cats.
寿司のほうが、ラーメンより好きです。

Sushi no hō ga, rāmen yori suki desu.

I prefer sushi to ramen.

一番好きな___は___です。

Ichiban suki na ___ wa ___ desu.

My favorite ___ is ___.

Meaning: My favorite ___ is ___.

When to use: Use this to state a favorite within a category (e.g., 一番好きな食べ物はカレーです). The first blank is the category.

一番好きな食べ物はカレーです。

Ichiban suki na tabemono wa karē desu.

My favorite food is curry.
一番好きな映画はスタジオジブリの映画です。

Ichiban suki na eiga wa Sutajio Jiburi no eiga desu.

My favorite movies are Studio Ghibli films.

___は好きですか。

___ wa suki desu ka.

Do you like ___?

Meaning: Do you like ___?

When to use: Use this polite question to ask about someone’s preferences. Put a noun in the blank (例：コーヒーは好きですか。).

コーヒーは好きですか。

Kōhī wa suki desu ka.

Do you like coffee?
旅行は好きですか。

Ryokō wa suki desu ka.

Do you like traveling?

___と___、どちらが好きですか。

___ to ___, dochira ga suki desu ka.

Which do you prefer, ___ or ___?

Meaning: Which do you prefer, ___ or ___?

When to use: Use to ask someone to choose between two options. Formal polite form uses どちらが好きですか.

コーヒーとお茶、どちらが好きですか。

Kōhī to ocha, dochira ga suki desu ka.

Which do you prefer, coffee or tea?
映画と本、どちらが好きですか。

Eiga to hon, dochira ga suki desu ka.

Which do you prefer, movies or books?

___が大好きです。

___ ga daisuki desu.

I love ___.

Meaning: I love ___.

When to use: Use to express very strong liking. Can take nouns or verb+の (e.g., 走るのが大好きです).

チョコレートが大好きです。

Chokorēto ga daisuki desu.

I love chocolate.
走るのが大好きです。

Hashiru no ga daisuki desu.

I love running.

___を楽しんでいます。

___ o tanoshinde imasu.

I enjoy ___.

Meaning: I enjoy ___.

When to use: Use to say you enjoy an activity or event. Put the activity or event as a noun with を.

日本語の勉強を楽しんでいます。

Nihongo no benkyō o tanoshinde imasu.

I'm enjoying studying Japanese.
週末のハイキングを楽しんでいます。

Shūmatsu no haikingu o tanoshinde imasu.

I'm enjoying weekend hiking.

___が大きらいです。

___ ga daikirai desu.

I hate ___.

Meaning: I hate ___.

When to use: Use to express a strong dislike. This is a strong phrase—use carefully in polite conversation.

ゴキブリが大きらいです。

Gokiburi ga daikirai desu.

I hate cockroaches.
嘘が大きらいです。

Uso ga daikirai desu.

I hate lies.

___は本当に無理です。

___ wa hontō ni muri desu.

I can't stand ___.

Meaning: I can't stand ___.

When to use: Use to express a very strong inability to accept or tolerate something (会話的, strong emotion).

辛い食べ物は本当に無理です。

Karai tabemono wa hontō ni muri desu.

I really can't stand spicy food.
ジェットコースターは本当に無理です。

Jetto kōsutā wa hontō ni muri desu.

I really can't do roller coasters.

2. Conversational Listening Practice

Hear phrases in a real mini-conversation.

Two friends compare travel and food preferences

Anna and David smiling while exchanging sentences about favorite foods and travel preferences in Japanese.

What general topic are Anna and David talking about?

Portrait of Anna in a Japanese lesson dialogue

Anna

旅行は好きですか。

Ryokō wa suki desu ka.

Do you like traveling?

Portrait of David in a Japanese lesson dialogue

David

はい、旅行が大好きです。特に海のほうが好きです。

Hai, ryokō ga daisuki desu. Toku ni umi no hō ga suki desu.

Yes, I love traveling. I especially prefer the sea.

Portrait of Anna in a Japanese lesson dialogue

Anna

私は山のほうが好きです。ハイキングを楽しんでいます。

Watashi wa yama no hō ga suki desu. Haikingu o tanoshinde imasu.

I prefer the mountains. I enjoy hiking.

Portrait of David in a Japanese lesson dialogue

David

へえ、山登りはあまり好きじゃありません。でも写真は好きです。

Hē, yamanobori wa amari suki ja arimasen. Demo shashin wa suki desu.

Oh, I don't really like mountain climbing. But I like photos.

Portrait of Anna in a Japanese lesson dialogue

Anna

一番好きな食べ物は何ですか？

Ichiban suki na tabemono wa nan desu ka?

What's your favorite food?

Portrait of David in a Japanese lesson dialogue

David

一番好きな食べ物は寿司です。寿司が大好きです。

Ichiban suki na tabemono wa sushi desu. Sushi ga daisuki desu.

My favorite food is sushi. I love sushi.

3. Guided Practice

Quizzes and matching to lock in meaning.

How do you say 'I prefer coffee' in polite Japanese?

What's the polite way to ask 'Do you like sushi?'

How would you say 'I'm not a big fan of rainy days' politely?

Pick the sentence that means 'I prefer sushi to ramen.'

My friend asked, and I answered, "I prefer coffee."

友達に聞かれて、私は「___。」と答えました。

In a conversation about summer and winter, he said, 'I'm not a big fan of winter.'

夏と冬の話で、彼は『___』と言いました。

At the restaurant I honestly said, 'I prefer sushi to ramen.'

レストランで友達と比べて、私は『___』と正直に言いました。

Match the core phrases

Match the extra phrases

4. Speaking Practice

Say phrases yourself (mic/recording).

Recording stays on your device only. Check speech uses your browser's speech tools when available.

Say this phrase out loud:

___が好きです。

___ ga suki desu.

I like ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

___が大好きです。

___ ga daisuki desu.

I love ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

___は好きじゃありません。

___ wa suki ja arimasen.

I don't like ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

___はあまり好きじゃありません。

___ wa amari suki ja arimasen.

I'm not a big fan of ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

___のほうが好きです。

___ no hō ga suki desu.

I prefer ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

___のほうが、___より好きです。

___ no hō ga, ___ yori suki desu.

I prefer ___ to ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

一番好きな___は___です。

Ichiban suki na ___ wa ___ desu.

My favorite ___ is ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

___は好きですか。

___ wa suki desu ka.

Do you like ___?

Say this phrase out loud:

___と___、どちらが好きですか。

___ to ___, dochira ga suki desu ka.

Which do you prefer, ___ or ___?

Say this phrase out loud:

___が大好きです。

___ ga daisuki desu.

I love ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

___を楽しんでいます。

___ o tanoshinde imasu.

I enjoy ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

___が大きらいです。

___ ga daikirai desu.

I hate ___.

Say this phrase out loud:

___は本当に無理です。

___ wa hontō ni muri desu.

I can't stand ___.