Polite written style

Level 6Sounds Like desumasuchou

ですます調（ですますちょう）, also known as 敬体（けいたい）, is the 'polite style' used in daily adult interactions, business, and instructional writing. It creates a respectful social distance between the speaker/writer and the audience.

How It Works

1. Function and Nuance
The ですます調 is the stylistic manifestation of 丁寧語（ていねいご / polite language）in sentence endings. It is used to maintain a comfortable social distance. In writing, it makes the tone feel 'softer' and more 'approachable' compared to the assertive or academic だ・である調（常体）. To further enhance this approachability, sentence-ending particles like ね or よ are frequently added.

2. Morphological Rules
This style applies to the entire conjugation of the sentence ending, not just the present affirmative:

  • Verbs: Built upon the 連用形（れんようけい / stem form）of the verb, use the ます form and its variations: ません (negative), ました (past), and ませんでした (past negative).
  • Nouns & な-Adjectives: Use です, ではありません (or the colloquial じゃありません / ではないです), でした, and ではありませんでした (or じゃありませんでした) for past negative.
  • い-Adjectives: Attach です to the dictionary form (e.g., おいしいです) or its inflections (e.g., おいしくないです). The formal negative form 〜くありません is also standard for polite language in formal contexts.
  • Presumptive: The polite presumptive form でしょう is a core component of this style. Note that だろう is the plain form (だ・である調) and only でしょう belongs to the ですます調.

3. Subordinate/Relative Clause Rule
It is crucial to remember that です and ます are generally restricted to the end of the main clause. Verbs and adjectives inside relative clauses and conditionals (like と, ば, たら) require the plain form. For example, saying 「明日行きます予定です」(Incorrect) is a major error; the correct form is 「明日行く予定です」(Correct). However, certain conjunctions like から, が, and けれども frequently take the polite form in polite speech.

4. Usage Contexts
This style is commonly used for:

  • Business emails and professional correspondence.
  • Public speeches and news anchor scripts (though written news articles usually use だ・である調 for objectivity).
  • Introductory language textbooks and user-friendly guides (whereas academic textbooks for native speakers and technical manuals often use the plain style for objectivity and brevity).
  • Interactions between adults who are not close friends.

5. Strict Rule: No Mixing (文体の統一)
A fundamental rule of Japanese writing is 文体の統一（ぶんたいのとういつ / unification of writing style）. Mixing ですます調 and だ・である調 in the main text is a major grammatical error. The only valid exceptions where plain forms appear in a polite text are inside direct quotes (e.g., 「〜だ」と言いました) and in bulleted lists.

Examples (3)

  1. 本日はお忙しい中、お集まりいただきありがとうございます。

    Thank you for gathering here today despite your busy schedules.

    Word by Word: Today (topic) busy middle, gathering receive, thanks exist.

    A classic example of the polite style used in a public speech or formal setting.

  2. このアプリを使えば、簡単に写真を編集することができます。

    By using this app, you can easily edit photos.

    Word by Word: This app (object) if use, easily photos (object) edit do thing (subject) can.

    Commonly found in manuals or instructional guides to maintain a helpful and polite tone.

  3. 昨日は友達と映画を見に行きました。とても楽しかったです。

    I went to see a movie with my friend yesterday. It was very fun.

    Word by Word: Yesterday (topic) friend with movie (object) see to went. Very was-fun.

    Standard polite past tense used in a blog post or a letter to an acquaintance.

Common Mistakes

  • Attaching です directly to a verb.

    明日、学校へ行くです。
    明日、学校へ行きます。

    です follows nouns and adjectives. Verbs must be conjugated into the ます form to be polite.

  • Incorrect past tense for い-adjectives in polite style.

    昨日の映画は面白いでした。
    昨日の映画は面白かったです。

    In the polite style, you cannot say 'い-adjective + でした'. You must use the past form of the adjective (〜かった) followed by です.

  • Mixing polite and plain styles inconsistently.

    私は学生です。毎日勉強する。そして、本を読みます。
    私は学生です。毎日勉強します。そして、本を読みます。

    A strict rule in Japanese writing is 文体の統一（ぶんたいのとういつ / unification of writing style）. Mixing polite style and plain style in the main text is a major grammatical error. The only exceptions are direct quotes or bulleted lists.

How It Connects

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Polite written styleLevel 6

Learn This First

The 'desu-masu' style (desumasu-chou) is the standard polite written and spoken style in Japanese. To understand it, you must be familiar with the polite copula 'desu' and the polite verb ending 'masu', as well as the general concept of how Japanese distinguishes between formal and informal speech.

Words in This Pattern

ですます調