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hanamaru

Invite someone politely (ませんか)

Turn a negative verb into a question with か to invite someone to do something with you politely.

JLPTN5
[verb stem] + ませんか[verb stem] + masen ka

Polite invitation: won't you? / would you like to?

Inviting or suggesting

Micro-Shift

いっしょに 行(い)きませんか。

Invitation: your choiceWould you like to go together?

ませんか asks politely and leaves the choice to the listener. It is the safe way to invite someone for the first time.

In Japanese, asking directly 'Will you eat?' (食べますか(たべますか)) sounds like an inquiry about facts. To make an invitation, Japanese speakers ask negatively: 食べませんか(たべませんか) (won't you eat?).

This negative phrasing (〜ませんか (masen ka)) is polite and considerate: it provides social room for the other person to say no without confrontation.

  • いっしょに お昼を 食べませんか(いっしょに おひるを たべませんか) (Won't you have lunch together?)
  • 京都へ 行きませんか(きょうとへ いきませんか) (Would you like to go to Kyoto?)

When accepting, reply with 〜ましょう (let's): 'はい、食べましょう!'.

Tips and Common Traps