Japanese - Hesitation

Lesson 91 of 168

A friendly café scene with two people speaking softly in Japanese, demonstrating hesitation phrases like あの and あ、じゃなくて while talking about a presentation.

Goal: Soft starters, approximations, and quick self-corrections

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

Ready to sound natural when you pause, rethink, or soften an opinion? This short lesson helps you slip small, polite hesitation phrases into real conversation so you stay smooth and friendly.

Level A2: Lesson 91 focuses on everyday hesitation phrases you can use to buy time, soften an opinion, and correct yourself politely. You'll practice the core chunks あの、___ (Ano, ___), どちらかというと、___です。 (Dochira ka to iu to, ___ desu.), とか、そんな感じです。 (Toka, sonna kanji desu.), and あ、じゃなくて、___です。 (A, ja nakute, ___ desu.). This CEFR-aligned mini-lesson is playful but practical — learn to hesitate like a native without losing the thread of the conversation.

After this lesson you'll be able to:

  • Recognize and use polite hesitation phrases to start or soften speech.
  • Practice giving approximate opinions with どちらかというと (Dochira ka to iu to).
  • Make quick self-corrections with あ、じゃなくて (A, ja nakute) and add uncertainty with とか、そんな感じです (Toka, sonna kanji desu).
  • Build confidence using these phrases in short conversations (Level A2).
A close-up of a learner listening to a polite Japanese speaker start with あの、___ to gently introduce a topic about preferences.

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.

あの、___

Ano, ___

You know, ___.

Meaning: You know, ___

When to use: Use this at the start of a sentence to buy time and gently introduce your idea. It doesn't ask if someone knows something — it's a soft conversational starter.

Tip: Beginners sometimes treat あの as literally 'you know' — here it's just a gentle opener, not a question about knowledge.

あの、ちょっといいですか。

Ano, chotto ii desu ka.

Um, may I ask something?
あの、どう言えばいいかわからないのですが。

Ano, dō ieba ii ka wakaranai no desu ga.

Um, I'm not sure how to say this...

どちらかというと、___です。

Dochira ka to iu to, ___ desu.

It's more like ___.

Meaning: It's more like ___.

When to use: Use this to give an approximate opinion. You can put a noun or adjective in the blank (or add a short phrase). For a full-sentence feel, you can also say 「___という感じです。」

どちらかというと、甘いです。

Dochira ka to iu to, amai desu.

It's more like sweet.
どちらかというと、夏の方が好きです。

Dochira ka to iu to, natsu no hō ga suki desu.

I'd say I prefer summer, more or less.

とか、そんな感じです。

Toka, sonna kanji desu.

Or something like that.

Meaning: Or something like that.

When to use: Attach this after an idea to show you're giving a rough example or to soften a suggestion. In casual speech you can drop です.

カフェでお茶を飲むとか、そんな感じです。

Kafe de ocha o nomu toka, sonna kanji desu.

Like having tea at a café, or something like that.
映画を見るとか、そんな感じです。

Eiga o miru toka, sonna kanji desu.

Watching a movie, or something like that.

あ、じゃなくて、___です。

A, ja nakute, ___ desu.

Wait, I mean ___.

Meaning: Wait, I mean ___.

When to use: Use this to quickly correct yourself after saying the wrong word. If you're correcting a whole phrase, dropping the final です can sound more natural.

Tip: Don't use this to correct someone else — it's for self-correction. Beginners sometimes overuse it and interrupt themselves unnecessarily.

あ、じゃなくて、明日です。

A, ja nakute, ashita desu.

Oh, no — I mean tomorrow.
あ、じゃなくて、青です。

A, ja nakute, ao desu.

Wait, I mean blue.

2. Conversational Listening Practice

Hear phrases in a real mini-conversation.

Talking about a presentation

Anna and David sit across from each other as David hesitates, corrects himself with あ、じゃなくて, and finishes with とか、そんな感じです.

Who corrects what they said?

Portrait of Anna in a Japanese lesson dialogue

Anna

こんにちは、今日のプレゼンについてどう思いますか？

Konnichiwa, kyō no purezen ni tsuite dō omoimasu ka?

Hi — what did you think about today's presentation?

Portrait of David in a Japanese lesson dialogue

David

あの、ちょっと緊張しましたが、どちらかというと、よくできたと思います。

Ano, chotto kinchō shimashita ga, dochira ka to iu to, yoku dekita to omoimasu.

Um, I was a bit nervous, but it's more like it went well.

Portrait of Anna in a Japanese lesson dialogue

Anna

具体的にはどこがいいと思いましたか？

Gutaiteki ni wa doko ga ii to omoimashita ka?

Specifically, what did you like?

Portrait of David in a Japanese lesson dialogue

David

スライドが少し多かったです。あ、じゃなくて、情報が多かったです。

Suraido ga sukoshi ōkatta desu. A, ja nakute, jōhō ga ōkatta desu.

There were a few too many slides. Wait, I mean there was a lot of information.

Portrait of Anna in a Japanese lesson dialogue

Anna

あ、わかります。デザインはいいですよ、とか、そんな感じです。

A, wakarimasu. Dezain wa ii desu yo, toka, sonna kanji desu.

Ah, I understand. The design is good, or something like that.

3. Guided Practice

Quizzes and matching to lock in meaning.

Which phrase is a soft starter used to buy time?

Which phrase do you use to give an approximate category or opinion?

Which phrase adds polite uncertainty after an example?

Which phrase is used to quickly correct something you just said?

When starting a topic, Sato-san says, 'Um, may I ask something?'

話を切り出すとき、佐藤さんは『___ちょっといいですか。』と言います。

Asked about ice cream, you answer, 'It's more like vanilla.'

アイスの好みを聞かれて、あなたは『___』と答えます。

When correcting his answer, he said, 'Wait, I mean blue.'

答えを直すときに、『赤ではなくて___』と彼は言いました。

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:

あの、___

Ano, ___

You know, ___ (soft starter)

Say this phrase out loud:

どちらかというと、___です。

Dochira ka to iu to, ___ desu.

It's more like ___

Say this phrase out loud:

とか、そんな感じです。

Toka, sonna kanji desu.

Or something like that

Say this phrase out loud:

あ、じゃなくて、___です。

A, ja nakute, ___ desu.

Wait, I mean ___