Japanese word

あちら

Pronunciation

Romajiachira

Meaning

  • pronounover there

Example

駅はあちらです。eki wa a chi ra de su

The station is over there.

Illustration for あちら (over there)

More examples

詳しい案内はあちらでお尋ねください。kuwa shi i an nai wa a chi ra de o tazu ne ku da sa i

Please ask for detailed information over there.

Core concept

Places a person or thing at a noticeable distance from the speaker and can point toward that place.

Common phrases

  • あちらへどうぞa chi ra e dō zo

    that way, please

  • あちらの席a chi ra no seki

    the seat over there

Similar words

あっちatchi: A casual way to refer to a place or direction at a distance from the speaker.
そちらsochira: A polite way to refer to a place or direction near the listener or being discussed.

Definition in Japanese

話し手と聞き手から離れた場所や、そこへ向かう方向を指し示す語。hana shi te to ki ki te ka ra hana re ta ba sho ya so ko e mu ka u hō kō o sa shi shime su go

Word origin

The form あちら (achira, "over there") is built from the distal stem あち (achi, "that way") and ら (ra), while casual speech commonly shortens it to あっち (atchi).

Usage tips

  • In polite conversation, あちら (achira) is a natural choice when giving directions to a visitor, whereas あっち (atchi) sounds casual.

Other meanings

  • that waypronoun

Opposites

Word lists with this word