How to say “I, You, He, She, They, We” in Japanese

Different Ways to Say “I” in Japanese

Kanji	Hiragana	Romaji	Level / Who uses it	Meaning & Usage
私	わたし	watashi	Polite / Neutral	Used by both men and women in formal and casual settings.
私	わたくし	watakushi	Very formal	Used in business, interviews, or formal speeches.
僕	ぼく	boku	Casual–Polite (Male)	Common among boys and men; sounds gentle or humble.
俺	おれ	ore	Very casual (Male)	Informal; used by men with close friends or in relaxed settings. Not polite.

Basic Japanese Pronouns

English	Japanese (Kanji + Kana)	Romaji	Notes
I	私（わたし）	watashi	“I / me.” Neutral and polite. Used by both men and women.
you	あなた	anata	“You.” Polite but not used often — in Japanese, it’s better to use the person’s name + さん (-san) instead.
she	彼女（かのじょ）	kanojo	“She / her.”
he	彼（かれ）	kare	“He / him.”
they	彼ら（かれら）	karera	“They.” Usually refers to a group of males or mixed genders.
they	あの人たち（あのひとたち）	anohitotachi	“Those people / they.” A neutral and polite alternative to “karera.”
we	私たち（わたしたち）	watashitachi	“We / us.” Common and polite.
we (formal)	我々（われわれ）	wareware	“We” in a formal, business, or official speech style.

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