Japanese Responses Hai Ee and Un Yes No

Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586
www.elsevier.com/locate/langcom
Japanese responses hai, ee, and un: yes, no, and

beyond
Jerey Angles, Ayumi Nagatomi, Mineharu Nakayama*
Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures, The Ohio State University, 204 Cunz Hall,
1841 Millikin Road, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
Keywords: Japanese; Positive response; Back-channel; Hai; Ee; Un
1. Introduction
The Japanese language has three basic positive response forms: hai, ee, and un,
each of which is used in a variety of contexts. Frequently, the distinction between
them is described as one of politeness or formality (e.g. Tsukuba Language Group,
1991; Association for Japanese Language Teaching, 1994; Guruupu Jamashii, 1998).
As demonstrated below in (1a) and (1b), hai and ee are used with humble and polite
verbal forms while un is used with casual-style speech. Inversely, hai and ee are not
used with casual-style verbals as in (1c).1 Although both hai and ee can be used with
humble verbal forms as in (1a), ee is inappropriate if used in formal situations, such
as when the respondent replies to a person of higher social status or to someone that
is a relative stranger.2
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +1-614-292-5816; fax: +1-614-292-3225.
E-mail address: nakayama.1@osu.edu (M. Nakayama)
1
If sentence (1c) were to end with the sentence nal particle wa, which is common among female
speakers (i.e. èe, iku-wa' `yes, I will go'), then along with un, ee would also be possible. Hai, however, is
still not possible. The addition of the sentence nal particle wa softens the statement, making it sound
slightly more polite. Ee falls somewhere between the relatively polite/formal hai and the relatively informal/direct un in terms of politeness and formality. With the addition of wa, therefore, it would be
appropriate to shift the initial utterance from un to ee in line with the increased softness and formality of
wa. As for the politeness of the sentence nal particle wa, see Ide (1991), and in regards to interrogatives
without ka such as (1c), see Takahashi and Nakayama (1995).
2
The following abbreviations are used in this paper: Nom=Nominative case marker, Acc=Accusative
case marker, Dat=Dative case marker, Gen=Genitive case marker, Top=Topic marker, SFP=sentence
nal particle, Q=interrogative marker, NM=nominalizer, Cop=copula, Hon=honoric morpheme,
Hum=humble morpheme, Pol=polite morpheme, Pres=non-past tense/non-perfective; Past=past
tense/perfective. For the sake of consistency, we use this gloss system for the cited examples as well.
0271-5309/99/$ - see front matter # 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
PII: S0271-5309(99)00018-X
56
J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586
1a. A: Irasshaimasu-ka?
go-Hon-Pres-Q
`Will you go?'
B: Hai/ee/*un, mairimasu.
yes
go-Hum-Pres
`Yes, I will go.'
1b. A: Ikimasu
-ka?
go-Pol-Pres -Q
`Will you go?'
B: Hai/ee/*un, ikimasu.
yes
go-Pol-Pres
`Yes, I will go.'
1c. A: Iku?
go-Pres-Q
`Will you go?'
B: *Hai/*ee/un, iku.
yes
go-Pres
`Yes, I will go.'
All three of these response forms are also used as positive answers when responding to a negative question that presupposes that the respondent will agree. For
instance, the examples in (2) show that hai, ee, and un will appear when the
assumption contained in the negative question is correct. Here, the assumption contained in the negative question is that the respondent will not be going somewhere.3
2a. A: Irasshaimasen -ka?
go-Hon-Neg-Pres-Q
Àren't you going?'
B: Hai/ee/*un, mairimasen.
yes
go-Hum-Neg-Pres
`No, I'm not going.'
2b. A: Ikimasen
-ka?
go-Pol-Neg-Pres-Q
Àren't you going?'
B: Hai/ee/*un, ikimasen.
yes
go-Pol-Neg-Pres
2c. A: Ikanai?
go-Neg-Pres-Q
Àren't you going?'
3
If (2c) were to contain the sentence nal particle wa, then ee could also be possible. See footnote 1.
57
B: *Hai/*ee/un, ikanai.
yes
go-Neg-Pres
This use of the Japanese response forms diers from the use of the English word
yes and has been described by various researchers (e.g. Martin, 1962; Kuno, 1973).
Here too, we nd that the associations between response and politeness levels
observed above in (1) again hold true.
Other researchers have discussed dierent functions of hai, ee, and un, such as the
back-channel (or aizuchi in Japanese). Nonetheless, the overwhelming majority of
the studies of Japanese positive response forms deal primarily with hai and ee, and
to the best of our knowledge, there have been few comprehensive studies that contrast all three response forms. This paper will attempt to rectify this problem by
extensively examining the functions of hai, ee, and un. In the process, we will show
that the dierence among the three forms does not merely lie in their formality, but
also their functions. Specically, we will suggest that the fundamental function of
hai is to promote further discourse while that of ee and un is the back-channel. Also,
we will argue that the dierent functions of the three responses are extensions of
those fundamental functions as they operate in dierent contexts.
The next section will present a brief overview of the previous studies of hai and
ee. Following that, we will present a breakdown of the dierent functions of hai,
ee, and un, identifying eleven functions, some of which have been previously
identied by other scholars. Next, we will discuss the fundamental functions of
hai, ee, and un, and afterward, the nal section will present our concluding
remarks.
2. Previous studies
There are many studies that deal with hai and ee. In this section, however, we
will briey discuss these studies by breaking them down into those dealing with hai
and ee as responses and those dealing with them as signals. These two broad
categories will then be further divided. In Section 3 when we examine the functions
of hai, ee, and un individually, we will refer back to the discussions presented
below.
2.1. Responses
One of the most straightforward uses of hai, ee, and un is as a positive response to
a Yes/No question (hereafter YNQ). It was this use which appeared above in (1).
Alfonso (1966, p. 13) states that hai and ee are used to mean yes, but hai has a
connotation of deference and is very polite. Because of this, ee is more common in
normal situations. Other texts explain that ee is less formal than hai (Association for
Japanese Language Teaching, 1994, p. 8), and ee is more polite than un (Tsukuba
Language Group, 1991, p. 52). Similar statements can be found in linguistic studies
58
such as Komiya (1986), Yazaki (1990), and Guruupu Jamashii (1998) as well as in
Japanese language textbooks such as Mizutani and Mizutani (1977) and Young and
Nakajima-Okano (1984).
Martin (1962) and Kuno (1973) discuss cases in which hai can be used in
response to a negative question in a fashion that does not parallel the use of the
positive English response yes. The following examples come from Martin (1962, p.
365).
3. A: Kumamoto-e ikimasen -deshita-ka?
Kumamoto-to go-Pol-Neg -Past -Q
`Didn't you go to Kumamoto?'
B: (i) Hai/ee, ikimasen -deshita.
yes
go-Pol-Neg -Past
`No, I didn't.'
(ii) Iie, ikimashita -yo.
no go-Pol-Past -SFP
`Yes, I did indeed.'
As Speaker B's response (i) shows, hai or ee will be used in response to a negative
question if the content of the statement is correct, in other words if Speaker B did
not go to Kumamoto. Conversely, the response would contain iie if B did go. As the
translations above show, the use of hai and ee in response to a negative question is
opposite that of the positive English response yes.
Martin indicates, however, that this pattern of response is not just a matter of
whether or not the question is phrased in the negative form. To demonstrate this, he
raises several examples that contain negative questions but that are actually oblique
requests. Consider examples (4a) and (4b) from Martin (1962, p. 365).
4a. A: Moo sukoshi meshiagarimasen
-ka?
more a little Hon- drink-Neg-Pres -Q
`Won't you have a little more?'
kekkoo-de gozaimasu.
B: Iie, moo
no already enough Cop-Pol-Pres
`No (thanks), I've had ample.'
4b. A: Moo sukoshi meshiagarimasen
-ka?
more a little Hon- drink-Neg-Pres-Q
`Won't you have a little more?'
B: Hai, arigatoo-gozaimasu.
yes thank-you
`Yes, thank you.'
Even though Speaker A's statement takes the form of a negative question,
Speaker A is suggesting that B have more to drink. If A's utterance was interpreted
as a pure question, the response hai would indicate that B is not going to drink
59
anything else whereas iie would indicate that B would like some more. However,
since A's utterance is actually an invitation, hai is understood as a positive answer
despite the fact that the verbal is in the negative form, and the response hai, as in
(4b), indicates that B will have some more to drink.
Kuno (1973) further explored this problem of the use of hai in response to
negative questions by examining the questions themselves. In the process of his
investigation, he denes three categories of negative questions, each with its own
rules regarding the use of hai and iie. According to his analysis, in response to
`neutral' negative questions that do not possess a presupposition as to whether the
answer will be positive or negative, hai will introduce an answer that contains a
negative statement. (3) above is an example of such a question.
The second category consists of negative questions that presuppose that the
respondent will reply with a negative answer. In such cases, hai is used to introduce
an answer that contains a negative statement. The following example comes from
Kuno (1973, p. 278):
5. A: Ikanakatta -no desu
-ka?
go-Neg-Past -NM Cop-Pol-Pres -Q
Ìs it the case that you didn't go?'
desu.
B: Hai, ikanakatta -n
yes go-Neg-Past-NM Cop-Pol-Pres
`Yes, it is the case that I didn't go.'
However, just like the English yes, hai is used for introducing a positive answer in
response to a negative question that presupposes a positive answer, Kuno's third
category of negative question. Consider the following example from Kuno (1973, p.
278):
6. A: Itta
-no -dewa arimasen
-ka?
go-Past-NM -Cop- exist-Pol-Neg-Pres-Q
Ìsn't it the case that you went?'
B: Hai, ikimashita -yo.
yes go-Pol-Past-SFP
`Yes, I did go.'
Although A's question takes the negative form, the focus of the question is the
verb itta (`went'), which takes the positive form. Since Speaker B agrees with this
positive statement, hai is used. In this category, the appropriateness of the
response hai is determined by the syntactic form of the presupposition within the
question.
A number of other works mention that hai and ee can be used as other types of
responses, such as a back-channel noise meaning Ì have heard you' (Mizutani,
1988), as a response when one answers the telephone (Kumatoridani, 1992), as a
response to a knock at the door (Jorden and Noda, 1987, p. 26; Mangajin, 1993,
60
p. 151), or as a response to the calling of one's name (Jorden and Noda, 1987, p.
26).4 These functions will be further examined in Section 3.5
2.2. Signals
Kitagawa (1980) points out that there are cases in which hai introduces an utterance even when the speaker has not been asked a question or when there is no overt
statement that the speaker might be responding to. For instance, the following
example appears in Kitagawa (1980, p. 114).
7. Teacher: Hai, sore dewa kyoo -wa san-peeji -kara hajimemasu.
then
today-Top page-three-from start-Pol-Pres
ÒK, we start from page three today.'
In this case, hai is clearly not a response because it does not follow any other
utterance. Hai is merely used to break the silence and introduce the teacher's statement. Kitagawa explains that in such cases, hai functions as a `bracket marker', a
voicing that helps with the cadence and pulsing of an activity (p. 114). Here, it marks
the beginning of the teacher's statement that the class will begin with page three in
their textbooks. In such cases then, hai serves as a signal that some other statement
is going to follow (Kitagawa notes, however, this hai may, by extension, express the
teacher's acknowledgement that the class is about to start, and thus also serve as a
sort of response to a similar expectation on the part of the class).
Hyuuga (1980) notes that when hai serves as a response, it can be substituted with
ee, but when hai operates as a signal, it cannot be. Consider the following example.
8. A: Shukudai-wa owarimashita -ka?
homework-Top nish-Pol-Pres-Q
`Did you nish your homework?'
B: Hai/ee.
4
Kitagawa (1980) has discussed the back-channel as a category separate from three other responsive
uses of hai: roll call, cooperation-response, and response to request/command. We will discuss all of these
functions further in the next section.
5
Though this problem is only tangentially related to the discussion at hand, it is interesting to note
another other dierence between the English response yes and the Japanese responses hai, ee, and un.
When an English-speaking fan is at a sports game, cheering on a favorite team, he may shout ``Yes!'' when
the team scores a point. Likewise, when teachers are handing back graded tests, students may say ``Yes!''
if they did well, especially in cases in which they were worried about their results. In both cases, it seems
likely that the English ``Yes!'' is in response to unstated questions, in these cases, `Àre they going to make
a point?'' and ``Did I do well?'' respectively. In both situations, however, Japanese-speakers would not say
hai, ee, or un. Instead, a common reponse would be ``Yatta!'' meaning ``[They/I] did it!'' It is clear that the
English response form yes has a pragmatic function that the Japanese response forms hai, ee, and un do
not have. Since the focus of this paper is the pragmatic dierences between hai, ee, and un, the comparison of functions between the dierent response forms in the two languages must be set aside for the time
being.
61
Here, the hai comes in clear response to a YNQ and is therefore an example of the
`response' hai. As demonstrated above, one can substitute ee for hai since the relative degree of formality permits it. In (7) above, however, one cannot substitute ee
for hai, even though the degree of formality would permit it because, as Hyuuga
puts it, the hai in (7) is a `signal' and not a response.
Kitagawa (1980) carries the notion of the `signal' hai one step further in accordance with Grice's (1975) Universal Communicative Principles by disassociating the
word hai from notions of agreement and assent. Even cases in which hai can be
interpreted as agreement can be explained in terms of Grice's Maxim of Quality
(`Do not make your contribution more informative than required') and the Maxim
of Manner (`Be perspicuous') (pp. 45, 46). Let us consider (8) again. Kitagawa
argues that hai expresses the respondent's acknowledgment and a willingness to
provide the information that the respondent believes that the addresser desires. Hai
vocalizes acknowledgment and compliance in a brief, orderly manner, thus avoiding
ambiguity. Hai's basic property is therefore that of a signal which responds to the
both the questioner's implicit and explicit expectations, namely acknowledgement
and information-providing, respectively.
Kitagawa attempts to conrm this by identifying situations in which hai might be
used when handing something to someone. Consider the following example from
Kitagawa (1980, p. 113).
9. Female oce worker: Hai/*ee, kore.
this
`Here, take this.'
Male oce worker: Nan dai? Kirei-na nekutai ja nai
-ka?
what Cop pretty-Cop necktie-Top Cop-Neg-Pres-Q?
`What is it? A beautiful tie!'
Female oce worker: Otanjoobi deshoo?
birthday Cop-would
Ìt's your birthday, isn't it?'
Hai is used in this example when the female worker presents a gift. Here, there is
no preceding overt expression to which hai is responding. Hai can therefore be used
when presenting something, but if a pickpocket, while running away from a policeman, shoves a stolen item into the hands of a passer-by it would be extremely odd
for him to use the word hai. The reason that he cannot use hai is because the passerby does not expect to receive something from the pickpocket. According to Kitagawa, hai is appropriate only when there is a tacit understanding that the speaker
will be presenting something, and therefore, one might consider this `signal' hai as a
response to an unspoken but clearly received message.
Hyuuga (1980) discusses the basic properties of hai in similar terms, but he
questions the validity of creating just one classication for hai. Hyuuga is skeptical
about the explanation that in cases such as (7), hai acts as a vocalized signal of
acknowledgement or as compliance to some unspoken expectation. He dierentiates
the hai that follows an utterance or question (i.e. the hai that comes as a response)
62
from the hai that appears without preceding utterances, explaining that the hai
without a preceding utterance has the strong illocutionary force of constructing
discourses and sustaining contexts. Observe the following from Hyuuga (1980, p.
221):
-o hakatte.
10. Nurse says to patient: Hai, taion
temperature -Acc measure-order
`Take your temperature.'
If a speaker intends to introduce a new topic or sustain the current discourse, hai
may be used. This explanation accounts for both the hai that appears without a
preceding utterance and the hai that comes in a response. Later in this paper, we will
return to a similar notion of hai, explaining that hai has the function of what we call
a `promoter.' As we will also show below, ee does not share the `promoter0 property
with hai since ee appears only in responses.
Until this point, we have been looking at previous studies of hai and ee, dividing
them roughly into two categories: responses and signals. The above discussion hints
that these two categorizations are too broad to be exhaustive and that the functions
of hai and ee can be further divided. Okutsu (1988) attempts to further subdivide the
dierent situations in which hai and ee can appear. This study is also of interest in
that it looks at un alongside hai and ee. For these two reasons, we should look at
this study in some detail.
Though Okutsu (1988) does not employ the categories `reply' or `signal' to classify
the various situations in which hai, ee, and un appear, his examples tend to fall
neatly under one rubric or the other. Okutsu notes that hai, ee, and un can all occur
as a reponse to a question that begins with a soo (such as soo desu ka meaning
``Really?''), to an outright YNQ (either negative or positive), to a statement that
ends in the sentence-nal particle ne, or to a statement that ends with some form of
daroo (meaning ``right?'' or ``probably''). In short, Okutsu shows that hai, ee, and
un can be used as responses to various, syntactically dierent types of YNQ or
YNQ-like statements that call for a yes/no-type response of agreement or disagreement. In the following section, we will return to the use of hai, ee, and un in
response to YNQ and YNQ-like statements.
Okutsu also observes that positive responses can also appear in response to
utterances that are not YNQs. For instance, hai, ee, and un can all appear in
response to a demand. Below are the examples which he gives for hai (1988, p. 142),
un (p. 149), and ee (p. 152). Since Okutsu analyzed data which came from a number
of conversations between housewives, each of the three response forms comes in a
quite dierent conversation.
11a. A. Moo sukoshi yoku nette kudasai.
more little
well knead please-Pol
`Please knead it a little better.'
B. Hai.
Àll right.'
63
11b. A. Jaa kocchi-ni sureba?

well here
make-if
`Why don't you make it here?'
B. Un, jaa soo suru.
well that do -Pres
Òkay, I'll do that.'
11c. A. Soi-ja kore dake suimasen, ja okaeshi-sasete.
well this just sorry,
well return -make
`Well, sorry for this, but let me return it [for you].'
B. Ee.
`Sure.'
In all three examples, A's demand is not a YNQ that demands a positive or
negative response as an answer. Since Okutsu gives quite dierent examples for each
of the three response forms, it is impossible to know from his discussion if hai, ee,
and un can appear as a response to all demands. In the following section, we will
raise the issue of the relative strength of the demand and show how this strength
determines which response form is appropriate. Before faulting Okutsu for not
explaining whether or not these three positive response forms would work with any
demand, we should recognize that the purpose of Okutsu's paper is not to provide
an exhaustive listing of all possible functions of hai, ee, and un. Rather, Okutsu
attempts in this study to measure how frequently hai, ee, and un appear in normal
conversation and to compare these frequencies to those of iie and other negative
responses. In the process of examining the numbers of appearances of positive and
negative responses, he creates general categories reecting where they appear in the
speaker's utterances, and one of these is `hai/ee/un before a demand.'
Okutsu (1988) explains that hai, ee, and un may all be used to reply to a comment.
The following examples illustrate this point (pp. 143, 149, 152, respectively):
12a. A. Nekoze-ni
naranakute ii
-wa -yo.
slumped-Cop become-Neg good-Pres-SFP-SFP
`You shouldn't slump over.'
B. Hai.
Àll right.'
12b. A. Sore -wa shoo-ga nai
-wa -yo.
that -Top way-Nom Cop-Neg-Pres-SFP-SFP
`That can't be helped.'
B. Un.
`Yeah.'
12c. A. Kore suzushisoo -de suteki-da
-wa -nee.
this cool-looking-Cop great -Cop-Pres-SFP-SFP
`This one is nice. It looks so cool.'
64
B. Ee,
kore-mo ano kirei-desu.

this-too umm pretty-Cop-Pol-Pres
`Yeah, this too. Um, it's pretty.'
As Okutsu notes, all of these sentences are in the form of statements, but these
statements have signicantly dierent illocutionary forces. A's utterance in (12a) is
an oblique suggestion, whereas in both (12b) and (12c), A makes simple statements.
Also, hai and un appear without anything following whereas ee introduces another
statement. Since the examples are so dissimilar, one is reluctant to conclude that the
hai, ee, and un are functioning in identical capacities in each example. Again, we
nd that in using Okutsu's study for our purpose, the categories of functions that he
proposes are not rigorous enough. In Section 3, we will examine the illucutionary
forces of the sentences that can follow hai, ee, and un in order to isolate the dierences between these three words.
The last situation in which Okutsu states that hai, ee, and un can all be used is in
the case of an interlude (ainote in Japanese) in which a speaker takes advantage of a
break in the conversation to insert a statement of his or her own. For instance, see
the following examples (pp. 144, 149, 153, respectively):
13a. A: A, sonna
koto -de.
uh, that-kind thing -Cop
`That about sums it up.'
B: Hai.
Àlright.'
A: Hontoni mooshiwake gozaimasen.
truly
excuse
have-Neg-Pres-Pol
Ì'm truly sorry [for what happened].'
13b. A: Ima-da
-to?
now-Cop-Pres-if
`How about now?'
B: Un.
Òkay.'
A: Ueno-kara yojikanhan -gurai nan
desu
-yo-ne.
Ueno-from 4:30
-about-Cop-NM Cop-Pol-Pres -SFP-SFP
Ìt's about four and a half hours from Ueno.'
13c. A: Ano, honto-wa -nee.
uh, truth -Top -SFP
Ùh, the truth is that. . .'
B: Ee.
`Yeah.'
A: Ii -n -desu
-kedo
ne-NM-Cop-Pol-Pres-but
`That's okay, but. . .'
65
Here too, one does not expect a yes/no response in any of these three situations
simply because none of the three statements made by A would call for one. Nonetheless, it is unclear whether hai, ee, and un are functioning in identical fashions. In
all three utterances by B, the words hai, ee, and un serve as an interlude before
speaker A says something else, but in (13b), ee may also be responding to the
implied YNQ, `Shall we go now?' The hai in (13a) and the un in (13c), however,
seem to indicate having heard and thus represent instances of what we shall later
identify as the back-channel noise.
Lastly, Okutsu notes two situations in which only hai can appear. The rst is at
the beginning of a sentence where there was no preceding utterance, as in (7) or (10).
The second is as a response to someone calling out a name, `hello' or some other
similar call. Though noting these functional dierences, Okutsu does not explain the
reasons for the dierent patterns of usage.
The following section of the paper is an attempt to subdivide the various
``responding'' and ``signalling'' functions of hai, ee, and un introduced in the studies
discussed above and to further problematize the notion that all three of these
reponse forms are equivalent. In doing so, we will present similar examples for hai,
ee, and un within each subdivision in order to isolate the incongruency between
these three words.
3. Examination of the functions of hai, ee, and un
This section will discuss eleven functions of hai, some of which have been identied by Kitagawa (1980), Okutsu (1988), and other scholars. We will test to see in
which cases the response words ee and un can also be used and thus attempt to make
a ne delineation between these words. This delineation will then provide the point
of departure for a hypothesis to explain the pragmatic dierences between the three
words. Because some of the broader functions require some lengthy explanation,
this section will deal with them rst before progressing to the other, more straightforward functions.
The focus of our investigation is limited to simply those uses of hai, ee, and un,
with falling intonation. If one were to state any of these words with a rising intonation and look of surprise or confusion, the meaning would become something like
`what are you talking about?', Ì didn't understand,' or Ì didn't hear you,' depending on the situation. Intonations are, therefore, critical in determining the meanings
and illocutionary forces of these words. The following discussion of hai, ee, and un
and their various functions touches upon some possible dierent intonations, but
fundamentally, the scope of our investigation is limited to falling intonations, not
rising ones.
3.1. Function A: a positive response to yes/no questions, including negative questions
The use of hai in response to a YNQ is perhaps one of the most common uses of
the word but not necessarily the most forthright. In response to YNQs, hai, ee, and
66
un may all appear as responses, but there are certain restraints on their use in terms
of formality. Observe the following example from Kitagawa (1980, p. 116).
14a. A: Ikimashita -ka?
go Pol-Past-Q
`Did you go?'
B: Hai/ee, ikimashita.
yes go Pol-Past
`Yes, I did.'
In this exchange, hai is acceptable. Ee can be used if the situation is not extremely
formal. For instance, if speaker A were a governor asking B, a student, if he went
somewhere, B might avoid using ee. However, if A and B were acquaintances of
about the same social rank, one might very well nd ee as a response to A's question. Unlike hai and ee, however, un would sound odd in this context.
14b. A: Ikimashita-ka?
B: *Un, ikimashita.
The reason that un is not acceptable here is that the relative informality of the
word un does not match the relative formality of the verbal ikimashita. The use of
the ending -mashita by B suggests that his entire utterance should be relatively
polite. However, in a similar, less formal situation like (14c), un would be acceptable.
14c. A: Itta?
go-Past?
`Did you go?'
-yo.
B: *Hai/*ee/un, itta
Yes
go-Past-SFP
`Yeah, I went.'
This exchange might take place between two close friends of similar age or
between people that have no formalities between them. In this utterance, un is
acceptable because its relative informality matches the informality of the casual-style
itta yo which follows. Ee would also be acceptable if the informal utterance were to
contain the sentence nal particle wa, which is often used in women's speech (see
footnote 1).
-wa -yo.
14d. B: *Hai/ee/un, itta
Yes
go-Past-SFP-SFP
`Yeah, I went.'
Here, either ee or un would be acceptable because the relative informality of these
two options matches the moderate informality of itta wa yo. Hai is less acceptable
67
because it sounds sti in comparison to the relative informality of the remainder of

the sentence.
There are, however, cases in which one might nd hai as a response to an informal
question. Consider the following.
15. A: Chotto, shitsumon-ga aru-kedo, ii?
little
question-Nom exist-but okay-Q
Ì have a small question. Is it okay?'
B: Hai/ee/un, doozo.
yes
please
`Sure, go ahead.'
All three possible answers are acceptable, providing that the relationship between
A and B is informal. Hai might be used to show a hint of formality, as if speaker B
was getting down to business by using it. Both ee and un would show a familiar
stance towards A. Likewise, hai could be an acceptable response in (14d) if the
speaker wanted to show a similar hint of formality as if he or she were suddenly
becoming serious. In either of these two cases, the use of hai would place a hint of
psychological distance between the two parties, even though they have a close relationship. It is this touch of psychological distance that would give the utterance an
air of seriousness.
In short, hai, ee, and un may all be used in response to a YNQ. The factor determining the appropriateness of these three choices is the relative degree of formality
in the situation. These observations mesh with traditional explanations of the difference in formality between these options, such as Alfonso's (1966) comments that
hai is more polite and deferent than ee even though their meanings are similar.
It is also worth noting that hai, ee, and un can all be used in response to implied
questions that do not have the syntactic question-marker ka at the end. For
instance, one may ask for conrmation on a point using the sentence-nal particle
ne. Observe the following exchange from Jorden and Noda (1987, p. 189).
16a. A: Jaa, ato ichi-jikan gurai desu
-ne.
well after one-hour about Cop-Pol-Pres-SFP
`Then it's about one hour to go, isn't it?'
B: Ee.
`Yes.'
Here, Jorden and Noda give ee as B's answer, but both hai and un would also
work.
16b. A: Jaa, ato ichi-jikan gurai desu ne.
B: Hai/ee/un.
Un would be appropriate only if the relationship between A and B allows B to
speak informally and directly with A. In both (16a) and (16b), speaker A's utterance
68
elicits a response from Speaker B. The illocutionary force of eliciting information

lies within the sentence nal particle ne, a particle that has as one of its functions the
request for conrmation or agreement [see Onoe (1997) for a summary of the functions of ne]. A correct response to an utterance with this ne would either involve a
`yes', `no', soo desu ne (`That's right'), or similar positive or negative agreement.
Therefore, even though the sentence does not contain the particle ka that overtly
creates a question, hai, ee, and un are all correct responses. In short, the particle ne can
elicit the same kinds of responses that one would expect from a YNQ [see the discussion of Okutsu (1988) above and the examples provided in Guruppu Jamashii (1998)].
As discussed in Section 2.1, the word hai can be used to respond to negative
questions in a fashion that does not parallel the use of yes in English. One nds that
in response to negative questions, the words ee and un behave just like hai. For
instance, consider these examples from Kuno (1973, pp. 275276).
17a. A: Nanimo kaimasen
deshita
-ka?
anything buy Pol-Neg Cop-Pol-Past-Q
`Didn't you buy anything?'
deshita.
B: Hai, nanimo kaimasen
yes anything buy-Pol-Neg Cop-Pol-Past
`No, I didn't buy anything.'
Kuno gives hai as a possible response, but one might also nd ee. If one were to
make B's response less overtly polite, one might nd ee or un but not hai as possible
responses.
17b. A: Nanimo kaimasen deshita-ka?
B: *Hai/ee/un, nanimo kawanakatta.
yes
anything buy-Neg-Past
`No, I didn't buy anything.'
Again, the factor that allows the use of ee and un in this sentence is its relative
lack of formality. As we can see from the verb endings, A speaks with relative
politeness to B, but B does not use overt markers of politeness on the end of his
verb. The levels of politeness indicate that B is someone with whom A needs to
maintain a distance (e.g. an older person or someone of superior social status). If B
responded with a more formal, polite utterance, one would be less likely to nd ee,
and un would become inappropriate.
The same pattern can be found in other types of negative questions. Recall (6)
from Kuno (1973, p. 278) (Here relabeled 6a). In this case, ee would also be appropriate answer. Observe then what happens when the verb endings are shifted to the
direct form in (6b).
6a. A: Itta
-no -dewa arimasen
-ka?
go-Past-NM-Cop- exist-Pol-Neg-Pres-Q
69
B: Hai/ee, ikimashita -yo.

yes
go-Pol-Past-SFP
`Yes, I did go.'
6b. A: Itta
-n -ja nai?
go-Past -NM-Top exist-Neg-Pres-Q
-yo.
B: *Hai/*ee/un itta
yes
go-Past-SFP
`Yes, I did go.'
Un is possible in (6b) and therefore, in the case of a negative question asked with
the presupposition that the respondent will agree, ee and un behave similarly to hai.
Each will, of course, be used in accordance to the appropriate rules of formality.
3.2. Function B: back-channel
Yngve (1970, p. 568) describes a back-channel signal as a signal through ``which
the person who has the turn receives short messages such as `yes' and ùh-huh'
without relinquishing the turn.'' Mizutani (1988, p. 4) describes the back-channel
(aizuchi in Japanese) as ``something which the listener inserts midway in the conversation in order to help the progress of the conversation.'' Hai, ee, and un can all
be used in this fashion in a Japanese conversation. Mizutani states that in using
these words, `òne will listen until the completion of one part of the other's speech
then use them in the role of prompting more, as if saying Ì have understood thus
far. Please continue''' (1988, p. 4). Generally these back-channel noises come at
pauses or syntactic breaks in the sentence such as after a gerund (Verb-te), a conjunctive kedo or ga `but', or Verb-kara `because' (Mizutani, 1988, p. 7). The following example from Mizutani (1988, p. 9) illustrates these points.
18. A: Sore-de yappari, ningen-no kangaekata
-ni -wa, sunde-iru
then
after-all human-Gen way-of-thinking-for-Top living
kankyoo
-ga
eikyoo -shite ite. . .
environment -Nom inuence -is
being. . .
Àll in all, human thought is inuenced by the environment in which one
lives and. . ..'
B: Hai.
A: ame-ga ooi-toka, jishin
-ga
yoku aru-toka, sooshita
rain-Nom lots-and earthquakes-Nom often have-and that-sort-of
shizen kankyoo. . .
nature environment. . .
`natural environments with lots of rain or environments. . .'
B: Shizenkankyoo
nature environment
`Natural environments (Ah, I see what you mean!)'
70
A: Hai. Soo iu mono -no eikyoo -ga

tsuyoi-n
such say things-Gen inuence -Nom strong-Cop-Pres-NM
-ja nai
-ka-na.
-Top Neg-Pres-Q -SFP
`That's right. I wonder if such things don't have a strong inuence.'
This conversation contains two appearances of the word hai, but either of these
could be replaced with ee or un (note that both speakers speak in the direct style,
and therefore there is not any need for politeness, hence the use of un is acceptable).
The rst hai comes from speaker B when s/he wants to indicate having heard what A
has said, and therefore, this hai is a typical example of the back-channel. The fact that
one can replace hai, ee, or un with one another (provided that one adjusts the politeness level) indicates that all three words can be used to indicate that one has heard
what the other speaker has stated. Though the function of eliciting more information
is not necessarily contained in the words hai, ee, or un, the context suggests that since
one has been listening, the other speaker should continue with his or her story.
The second appearance of hai comes from speaker A and is slightly harder to
explain because dual functions appear to be at work there. On one hand, this
instance seems to be an acknowledgement of what B has stated, and therefore might
be considered a back-channel response (Mizutani considered it as such). On the
other hand, this hai also seems to contain an element of agreement, as if A is conrming that what B has stated is correct, namely that natural environments are one
factor in shaping with human thought. When B says ``shizen kankyoo'' to him- or
herself, it appears to be done with a degree of internal questioning as B mulls over
the topic of conversation. Speaker A may be responding the internal question `Ìs
there a connection between the two?'' that appears to be passing through B's mind,
and therefore, Function A (positive response) may also be at work here. This
example suggests that the functions presented here in Section 3 are not always cutand-dry. In fact, in a particular instance of hai, ee, or un, there may be more than
one function operating at once.
For further discussions of the back-channel function of hai, ee, and un, see Kitagawa (1980), Komiya (1986), Maynard (1987), Matsuda (1988), Tosaku (1994), and
Guruupu Jamashii (1998), among others.
3.3. Function C: acknowledgement of having heard before answering
Kitagawa (1980) gives several examples of the word hai being used in response to
non-YNQ. For instance, see the following example from Kitagawa (1980, p. 108).
19a. A: Oi, shinbun -wa doko da
-ne?
ah newspaper-Top where Cop-Pres-SFP
`Hey, where is the newspaper?'
desu
-yo.
B: Hai, tana -no ue
shelf-Gen above Cop-Pol-Pres-SFP
Ìt's on the shelf.'
71
One nds that in this situation, speaker B can also use ee in place of hai. One
should note that speaker B's utterance is in polite style and is marked overtly with
the polite copula desu. If the utterance were more direct and less polite, then one
would be less likely to nd hai and ee, but more likely to nd un as an answer.
19b. A: Oi, shinbun-wa doko da-ne?
da
-yo.
B: *Hai/*ee/un, tana-no ue
shelf-Gen above Cop-Pres-SFP
Ìt's on the shelf.'
When the more direct form of the copula is used as in (19b), ee is not acceptable
but un is. This problem seems to be related to the speaker's gender. If B were male,
then the exchange would sound like the sample conversation in (19b), but if B were
female, then one might nd exchange (19a).
19c. A: Oi, shinbun-wa doko da-ne?
B: *Hai/ee/*un, tana-no ue-yo.
In this exchange, the empty copula is used (i.e. the copula does not appear
overtly), and ee is acceptable, but un sounds too brusque or blunt for traditional
female speech.
In (19a)(19c), A's question is a WH-question, not one that would require a
positive or negative response. From this, it is clear that here, hai, ee, and un are not
used to express agreement. As these examples show, hai may be used to acknowledge that one has heard what the other person has stated. This function may be
related to that of the back-channel (Function B), but as in cases (19a)(19c), however, the hai, ee, or un acknowledges having heard and also introduces new information. When used in such situations, hai, ee, and un must be followed by some
statement, otherwise the response becomes awkward. Isolated instances of hai, ee,
and un tend to sound like positive agreement, and so in cases like this when the
question is not one that syntactically calls for agreement or disagreement, hai, ee, or
un alone would sound awkward. This leads one to believe that such instances of hai,
ee, and un are not examples of Function B, the back-channel. For instance, B's
response in the following exchange would sound strikingly odd.
19d. A: Oi, shinbun wa doko da ne?
B: *Hai/*ee/*un. (Not presenting a paper.)
The following example demonstrates that when used in this function, the speaker
does necessarily not have to be of the same mind set as other person. Consider the following example, which is a modied version of a conversation in Natsume (1976, p. 89).6
6
Natsume (1976) was originally published in 1907 and contains `densha-e notte' instead of `densha-ni
notte'. Because the former sounds like dialect, we have chosen the latter to keep all of our cited examples
in standard Japanese.
72
20a. A: Kore-kara sugu densha -ni notte kaeranai

-to
hirumeshi -o
Here-from soon train -to get-on go-home-Neg -when lunch
-Acc
kuisokonau.
eat-lose-Pres
Ìf I don't go right now and get on the train to go home, then I am going
to lose out on lunch.'
B: Sono hirumeshi-o ogoroo
-ja nai
-ka?
that lunch
-Acc let-me-treat-Top-Cop-Neg-Pres-Q
`Why don't I treat you to lunch then?'
A: Un (hesitant intonation) mata kondo-ni shiyoo.
again next-time let's-make
`Well, how about next time?'
Since the relationship between A and B is close, un is used. However, hai and ee
would also work, provided that A speaks to B with distance and with hesitation in
his voice.
20b. A: Kore-kara sugu densha-ni notte kaeranai
-to
ohiru
Here -from soon train -to get-on go-home-Neg-when lunch
-o tabesokonau-n
desu.
-Acc eat-lose -NM Cop-Pol-Pres
B: Sono hirumeshi-o ogoroo ja nai ka?
A: Hai/ee (hesitant intonation), demo mata kondo-ni shimashoo.
but again next-time let's-make-Pol
If these instances of hai, ee, or un in (20a) or (20b) were spoken in a rapid,
ordinary intonation, they would sound like positive responses, and therefore would
clash with the ``how about next time?'' included after them. Kitagawa notes that
``Japanese hai and ee, as well as English yes, can all be used as back-channel
signals, the accompanying intonation contours often serving as an indicator of the
degrees of enthusiasm involved'' (1980, p. 115). The same may also be said of un. A
pause or hesitant intonation here indicates that one is not comfortable with the idea
of eating lunch today, that one has heard or acknowledged the oer but has some
reservations about accepting. This example suggests that hai, ee, and un can be used
to indicate that one has heard, even though the speaker is not of the same mind with
the addressee. This contradicts Kitagawa's theory regarding the use of ee, which
states that the word is used when one is of the same mind with the addressee. When
ee is stated with a bit of hesitation, then the speaker is not of the same mind. Likewise, it is important to note that as in the above example, the hai, ee, or un must be
followed by some information.
20c. A: Kore-kara sugu densha-e notte kaeranai-to hirumeshi-o kuisokonau.
B: Sono hirumeshi-o ogoroo ja nai ka?
A: *Un/*ee/*hai (hesitant intonation).
73
Here, even though Speaker A's voice has a note of hesitation about it, it might
seem that A is accepting the oer, though begrudgingly. Unless B were to follow up
with another question to conrm A's desire to go eat, then B would probably not be
clear as to whether A's reservations are serious enough to prevent A from going to
lunch with B. Not enough information is provided to make A's stance clear. Such
cases suggest that intonation and context are extremely important factors in interpreting how the hai, ee, or un will be understood.
Example (21) is another instance of the same phenomenon, also a modied conversation from the same novel by Natsume (p. 86).7
21a. Wife: Oniisan
-no tokoro-e irasshatte onegai nasattara,
elder-brother-Gen place -to go-Hon request do-Hon-if
doo deshoo?
how Cop-would
`Why don't you go to your older brother's place and ask him?'
-ga -ne.
Husband: Un (hesitant intonation), sore mo ii
that also good-Cop-Pres-but-SFP
`Yeah, I suppose that I work but (I don't want to).'
The husband's utterance begins with hesitant intonation. Note also that the
wife's question is not a YNQ that prompts a simple response of true/false or
agreement/disagreement. Un is used in the husband's response above, but either
hai or ee would work, provided the verbal form has the correct level of politeness.
(21b) shows a similar situation with a more formal response from the husband.
(We should note that such conversations expressing such a great degree of psychological distance between man and wife are rather unlikely to occur in modern
Japan.)
21b. Wife: Oniisan-no tokoro-e irasshatte onegai nasattara, doo deshoo?
deshoo
-kedo-ne.
Husband: Hai/ee (hesitant intonation), sore mo ii
that also good Cop-would-but -SFP
`Yeah, I suppose that I work but (I don't want to).'
The un/ee/hai opening the response resembles a back-channel noise (Function B),
yet it introduces further information. It is clear from the second part of the husband's statements in (21a) and (21b) that the hai, ee, and un do not indicate positive
agreement.
In the original, the wife's utterance is as follows:

(i) Oaniisan
-no tokoro-e irashite otanomi nasuttara, doo deshoo?
elder-brother-Gen place -to go-Hon request do-if
how Cop-would
`Why don't you go to your older brother's place and ask him?'
74
3.4. Function D: self-conrmation

Guruppu Jamashii (1998, p. 491) notes that hai may be used at the end of an
utterance after a speaker expresses his or her opinion, though such instances often
sound old-fashioned or humbling. It appears, that ee and un can also be used in the
same function. Consider the example below.
22a. A: Amerika-no daigaku -wa doo desu
-ka?
America-Gen university -Top how Cop-Pol-Pres -Q
`What are universities in America like?'
B: Yappari ookii desu
-yo, hai/ee/*un.
Of course big Cop-Pol-Pres -SFP
`They're really big!'
22b. A: Amerika-no daigaku-wa doo?
B: Yappari ookii-yo, *hai/*ee/un.
Example (22a) comes from a rather formal occasion when speaker B is responding
using polite language, and (22b) shows a similar casual exchange in which Speaker B
uses informal language. As before, the choice of hai and ee versus un is based on the
formality and politeness of Speaker B. In both conversations, Speaker A raises a
simple WH-question that intrinsically does not require a yes or no; therefore, B does
not place a negative or positive response at the beginning of the utterance. Why then
after answering A's question does B tack on a hai, ee, or un at the end? It appears
that Speaker B is conrming his or her thoughts internally, and the hai, ee, and un
expresses assurance as to the validity of the opinion expressed.
This function of self-conrmation could be interpreted as an extension of Function A above if one believes that B is saying hai, ee, or un in order to agree with the
previous statement. In other words, B seems to be experiencing a self-referential
thought, looking at her or his speech from a slightly dierent standpoint, checking
the veracity with a mental YNQ, `Ìs what I just said correct?'', and answering out
loud. The positive response thus assures him- or herself that this opinion is accurate.
Or alternatively, one could consider this function of self-conrmation as an extension of Function B, the back-channel. The speaker has just gone over what s/he just
said in her or his head and says hai, ee, or un meaning something like `that's what I
am thinking about.' In such a case, the hai (ee, or un) is related to the back-channel
in that the instance of hai/ee/un is a verbal indicator of having nished running
through the mental processes leading up to the comment. In this example, if B's
intonation were hesitant, as if to say `Ì'm not so sure that I agree with what I just
said,'' then the instance of hai, ee, or un would more likely be related to Function B
(back-channel) and not Function A (positive response). If B uses a straightforward,
positive, assured intonation, both Functions A and B could be operating simultaneously. Although these alternative interpretations are possible, here, we treat such
instances of hai, ee, and un as a separate function for the sake of brevity.
75
3.5. Function E: a response to a suggestion

Hai, ee, and un can all appear in response to a suggestion.8 As in the other functions
previously examined, un can only be used if the speaker's utterance is informal enough.
23a. A: Kore, kanji-de kaitara?
this kanji-in write-if
`Why don't you write this in kanji (Chinese characters)?'
B: Un. Soo suru.
so do-Pres
Òkay, I'll do so.'
This statement must take place between friends, otherwise the response un would
be too informal. For hai and ee, a politer verbal form would be required as in (23b).9
23b. B: Hai/ee. Soo shimasu.
so do-Pol-Pres
Òkay, I'll do so.'
In this conversation, the illocutionary force of Speaker A's statement is that of a
suggestion and therefore is not as strong as a command or request which, as will be
discussed below in Function F, only permits hai or un as a response.
Another possible explanation for the use of all three possibilities here is that these
are actually back-channel responses. Still, it appears that there is a certain degree of
agreement contained within the words hai, ee, and un as they appear here. This may
be because when one hears the above utterance, one mentally understands it in the
following fashion:
23c. A: Kore, kanji-de kaitara,
ii
-n -ja nai?
this kanji-in if-you-write good-NM-Top Cop-Neg-Pres-Q
`Wouldn't it be good if you write this in kanji?'
B: Un. Soo suru.
that do-Pres
`Yes, (you're right). I'll do that.'
8
Kitagawa's (1980) example for the cooperation-response may be classied here in this function if one
takes the following husband's utterance to be an implicit suggestion.
(i) Husband: Aa moo tsumetai biiru-no koto bakari shika kangaerare -nai
oh already cold
beer-Gen matter only except think-able -Neg-Pres-n
-da.
-NM
-Cop-Pres
Òh, gosh, I can think of nothing but cold beer!'
Wife: Hai. (She heads toward the refrigerator to bring a beer.)
9
If B were female, the informal utterance `èe, soo suru-wa'' would be possible, but ``hai, soo suru'' and
``hai soo suru-wa'' are awkward unless the speaker is trying to sound slightly more formal as if getting
down to business.
76
In this case, A's statement is a full-edged YNQ, and as we saw in Function A

above, hai, ee, and un are all acceptable answers to a YNQ, provided that there is an
appropriate corresponding verbal form.
3.6. Function F: a response to a command or a strong request
When a person is giving a forceful order or a strong request, then only hai or un,
not ee, may be used at the beginning of the following response.10
24. A: Sassa-to shiro!
Quickly do-(imperative)
`Do it right away!'
B: Hai/*ee/un.
25. A: Are-o
motte oide.
that-Acc bring come
`Could you bring that here?'
B: Hai/*ee/un.
In both conversations, Speakers A and B must be a superior and a subordinate or
an adult and a child, respectively. Un would only be appropriate if the relationship
is on familiar terms and if Speaker B does not need to show politeness towards A.
On the other hand, if Speaker A were a customer in a restaurant and Speaker B were
a waiter, then un would not be an acceptable answer since it does not meet the
standards of politeness expected from a waiter in such a situation. As in each of the
functions discussed thus far, the formality of the situation is a crucial factor in
determining whether or not un is permissible. See the following example.
26. Teacher: Bentoo-o chuumon shite koi!
lunch-Acc order
do come-(imperative)
Òrder a lunch and bring it here!'
Student: Hai/*ee/*un.
The social need for the student to be polite with his teacher means that he or she is
unable to use un as a response. However, if exchange (26) took place between a husband and wife that do not usually speak formally to one another, then un would work.
The following exchange, which might appear at the end of a telephone conversation, is an example in which the speaker uses a request form but ee is an acceptable
response.
10
The examples that Kitagawa (1980) classies as response to request/command fall into this category.
Okutsu (1988) lumps the use of hai, ee, and un as responses to suggestions and to commands under a
single rubric, suggesting that hai, ee, and un function identically in all situations, regardless of the strength
of the illocutionary force of the preceeding statement. We would argue, however, that some of his examples would fall into what we call Function E and some into Function F.
77
27 A: Mata denwa
shite kudasai.
again telephone do please
`Please call again.'
B: Hai/ee/un.
`Sure.'
Speaker A's sentence appears to be a polite command or request because the
polite word kudasai appears at the end, but nevertheless, we nd that ee is an
acceptable response contrary to what was stated above in the discussion of examples (24) and (25). Why? Multiple answers are possible. Because Speaker A's statement is so common as to have lost the illocutionary force of a direct, literal
command, it may not be perceived as such. Perhaps because such phrases ritually
appear at the end of a telephone conversation, B treats A's sentence as a mere
suggestion and hence it is Function E that is actually at work here. Also, B's
utterance also seems to incorporate elements of the back-channel (Function B) in
that B is indicating that s/he has heard what A has to say, and in cases of the backchannel hai, ee, and un are all acceptable. Again, this conversation illustrates that it
is sometimes dicult to isolate exactly which function is at work within a given
utterance.
3.7. Function G: attention-getting
When someone is attempting to get the attention of others, one can use the word
hai to capture the attention of the listener or listeners. The following example is
from Kitagawa (1980, p. 114).
28a. Teacher: Hai/*ee, sore-dewa kyoo -wa san-peeji -kara hajimemasu.
well-then today-Top page-three-from start-Pol-Pres
ÒK, we'll start from page three today.'
It seems here that the word hai is promoting further discourse by helping to
establish an open channel of communication between the teachers and students. Ee
cannot be used here, nor could the word un.
28b. Teacher: *Un, sore-dewa kyoo-wa san-peeji-kara hajimemasu.
The factor determining that un is inappropriate in this setting is not the degree
of politeness. This is clear because we nd that even if the sentence were uttered
in a direct style complete with informal verbal endings, the use of the word un
would still be inappropriate. Apparently, it is not restrictions associated with
politeness that bar the use of ee and un here. As Guruupu Jamashii (1998) notes,
in such situations when hai is used to attract attention, ee and un cannot be
substituted for it. Simply put, neither ee nor un possess the attention-getting
function.
78
3.8. Function H: a response to attention-getting

Conversely, when someone is being called, then the word hai often appears to
show that an atmosphere of mutually shared attention has been created. Again, this
signal promotes further communication in that it shows that further statements
made by the original speaker will fall upon open ears. The words un and ee do not
appear to have this function and cannot be used here.
29. A: Tanaka-san?
Tanaka-Mr.
`Mr. Tanaka?'
Tanaka: Hai/*ee/*un.
The utterance hai by Mr. Tanaka can have either a rising or a falling intonation.
The following is another example that shows that an attempt to get someone's
attention can be a little more complex.
30. Secretary: Tanaka-san, odenwa desu.
Tanaka-Mr. telephone Cop-Pol-Pres
`Mr. Tanaka, you have a telephone call.'
The secretary's statement here contains at least two illocutionary functions: (a)
getting Mr. Tanaka's attention, and (b) stating that there is a telephone call for him.
The fact that ee and un are not acceptable in this response, however, indicates that
Tanaka-san is responding only to the rst illocutionary force and not the second. As
discussed above, Function B, the back-channel, allows the use of all three possibilities, and therefore, Tanaka's response cannot be a back-channel responding to the
second illocutionary force of the secretary's statement.
Okutsu (1989, p. 11) provides a similar example of hai as a response to attentiongetting.
31. A: Moshimoshi.
(greeting used on telephone)
`Hello?'
B: Hai.
Ee and un could not appear here.
32. A: Moshimoshi.
B: Moshimoshi.
A: *Ee/*un.
Conversation (32) might take place when A is calling B on the telephone. The use
of hai shows that the person has heard and that there is a connection in place for
further communication to occur.
79
As mentioned above, Jorden and Noda (1987, p. 26) and Mangajin (1993, p. 151),
also touch upon hai's function as a response to attention-getting when they remark
that hai is the regular response to a knock at one's door or to the calling of one's
name. Again, in such cases, the use of hai indicates that a channel for further communication has been opened and thus promotes successful discourse between the
two parties.
3.9. Function I: presentation/submission
The word hai is frequently used when presenting something to someone. Such
instances of hai cannot be replaced with ee or un. Recall example (9), which originally comes from Kitagawa (1980, p. 113) [here it is renumbered (9a)].
9a. Female oce worker: Hai/*ee, kore.
this
`Here, take this.'
Male oce worker: Nan dai? Kirei-na nekutai ja nai
-ka?
what Cop pretty-Cop necktie-Top Cop-Neg-Pres-Q?
`What is it? A beautiful tie! What for?'
Female oce worker: Otanjoobi deshoo?
birthday Cop-would
Ìt's your birthday, isn't it?'
Here, hai again is promoting the conversation in the sense that hai allows one to
ease into the situation, prompting the presentation that follows.
In a situation in which one is presenting something to someone else, the words ee
and un cannot be used to capture the person's attention and introduce further discourse.
9b. Female oce worker: *Ee/*un, kore.
Male oce worker: Nan dai? Kirei na nekutai ja nai ka?
3.10. Function J: roll call
When a teacher is calling out the names of students in class, students will answer
with the word hai if present.
33. Teacher: Tanaka-san?
Again, the words ee and un do not appear in this situation. Kitagawa (1980, p.
111) mentions this use, and notes that in such cases, the word hai may be interpreted
as presenting new information to the teacher inquiring about the student. Kitagawa
suggests that this use of hai might be a case of answer-deletion if one considers the
80
hai is short-hand for the response ``Yes, I am here.'' Still, it is clear that this hai is
not related to what we have dened in this paper as Function A (positive response)
or Function B (back-channel) because one cannot use ee in this case, and if this
instance were either Function A or B, one would expect to be able to substitute ee
for hai (Un would be unacceptable, however, simply because Japanese society
demands that a student be polite to his teachers, and un sounds excessively familiar).
3.11. Function K: use as a repeated back-channel to cut o partner's speech
When Speaker A is telling Speaker B something that s/he already knows or does
not want to hear, then one might nd the following exchange.
34. A: Asoko-de iroiro -na mondai -ga
atta
kedo. . .
there -in various-Cop problems -Nom exist-Past but
`They had lots of problems there, but. . ..'
B: Hai, hai, hai/*ee, ee, ee/*un, un, un, shitte (i)ru -yo.
known have-SFP
`Yeah, yeah. I know.'
If one repeats the word hai two or more times, then the meaning becomes something like `yeah, yeah, got it already' when the speaker is a more neutral mood or
ènough is enough' when s/he is more irritated. Guruppu Jamashii (1998, p. 490)
notes that when one repeats hai multiple times in response to a question or demand,
then it sends the strong, rude message Ì've heard you already!' By repeating what
appears to be the Function B (back-channel), Ì have heard you' use of hai multiple
times, one strongly emphasizes the fact that one has heard, and by a leap of logic,
indicates that one does not need to hear anymore. Two or three times is perhaps the
most common number of repetitions when giving the word hai this meaning, though
it can occur with dierent numbers of repetitions.11 It is not possible to say hai only
once and achieve the dismissive aect of Function K.
11
Hai can be repeated fewer than or more than three times within the context of Function K, but three
is the most common number of times. Mangajin (1993) gives an example of the word hai used four times
in order to express the idea Ì heard you and I don't want to hear any more' (p. 151). In the example, in a
grandson cuts o his longwinded grandmother who is scolding him for the haphazard fashion in which he
has gone about his wedding preparations.
(i) Grandmother: Shiki

-mo agen,
shinkon-ryokoo -ni-mo ikan. . .
ceremony -even hold-Neg honeymoon
-to-even go-Neg
semete kon'in todoke
gurai taian
-no hi -ni
At-least marriage registration at-least auspicious -Gen day -on
dasan
-to kono isshoo -ni ichido -no tokubetsu -na. . .
turn-in-Neg -with this lifetime -in once -Gen special
-Cop
`You don't even hold a ceremony, you don't take a honeymoon. . .
(so) if you don't at least submit your marriage registration on an
auspicious day then this once-in-a-lifetime special. . .'
Grandson: Hai, hai, hai, hai.
(Footnote 11 continued at foot of next page.)
81
Table 1
Functions of hai, ee, un
Function
Hai
Ee
Un
A: Positive response to YNQ

B: Back-channel
C: Acknowledgement of having heard before answering
D: Self-conrmation
E: Response to a suggestion
F: Response to a command or a strong request
G: Attension-getting
H: Response to attention-getting
I: Presentation/submission
J: Roll call
K: Use as a repeated back-channel to cut o
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
X
X
X
X
X
X
O
O
O
O
O
O
X
X
X
X
X
One can repeat the words un or ee, but one does not produce a statement meaning
ènough is enough.' It only sounds like the back-channel ee and un has been repeated, and there is no signal for the other party to quit speaking. When repeating ee
and un, twice is perhaps the most common number of times (see also Komiya, 1986).
In several of the functions discussed above, the word `promoting' was used to
describe hai's function of introducing another statement or smoothing the transition
into a conversation, but here, it would seem that hai has almost exactly the opposite
function. Here, the repeated use of the word hai actually serves to cut o conversation rather than to further it. We will examine this important point below.
4. Discussion
Table 1 presents a summary of the functions listed above and indicates whether or
not hai, ee, and un, can be used with each. `Ò'' indicates that the word can be used
in that function, and ``X'' indicates that it cannot. In the constructing this chart,
levels of formality and politeness have been disregarded.
As Table 1 shows, neither ee nor un seem to have any functions that the word hai
does not also have, and therefore hai is the most inclusive word, covering all of the
functions listed above. One might therefore reach the conclusion that hai is the least
marked and neutral in meaning of the three words hai, ee, and un. It can be used in
situations as varied as roll call to giving a positive response to a YNQ.
The original source of this example is a comic book which bunches all of the above conversation into
two separate balloons, one for the grandmother and one for the student. It is, therefore, unclear where the
grandson's utterances come in relationship to the grandmother's statements. It may be that his hai are
scattered throughout her tirade as back-channel responses (Function B) or they may be all bunched
together at the end (Function K). The most likely possibility is that one or two of them come within her
speech and that the remainder come at the end. Here, as in other cases, intonation and timing are crucial
factors in determining which function is at work, and these elements are not discussed by the accompanying text.
82
The fact that one can use hai in so many seemingly disparate cases would seem to
support the hypothesis that hai is generally used to promote further discourse. If we
accept that hai promotes the discourse in a positive way, it makes sense that the
appearance of hai is not solely a function of whether a YNQ is syntactically negative
or positive, but rather that hai appears in response to the questioner's presuppositions. In Function D (self-conrmation), hai reassures the speaker in that what s/he
just said correctly responds to the other's question and thus leaves an open channel
for the listener to react. Functions B (back-channel), C (acknowledgement of having
heard before answering), and H (response to attention-getting) all show the speaker
is paying attention and is actively working to maintain the conversation. Functions
E (response to a suggestion) and F (response to a command or strong request) are
similar to Function A (positive response to a YNQ) in that hai acknowledges having
heard and responds to suggestions, requests, and commands in a positive manner.
Our understanding of `promoting further discourse' also includes engaging or initiating new discourse. This denition explains Functions G (attention-getting), I
(presentation/submission), and J (roll call). The interpretation of hai as a discourse
promoter can thus explain functions A through J.12
12
Hai can also function as a discourse promoter at the end of a phone conversation. Consider the
following example.
(i) A1: Mata denwa

shite kudasai -yo.
again telephone do please -SFP
`Please call me again.'
B1: Hai, wakarimashita.
Mata nomi-ni ikimashoo.
understand-Pol-Past again drink-for go-let's
`Sure. Let's go for a drink again.'
A2: Hai.
B2: Hai. Sayoonara.
A3: Hai.
Hai in B1 and A2 diers from hai in B2 and A3 in that they appear as clear-cut responses to a previous
statement. Ee could be substituted for both the instances of hai in B1 and A2 whereas it could not be for
hai in B2 and A3. This indicates that these two sets of the utterance hai are behaving in dierent functions. Unlike hai in B1 and A2, the instances of hai in B2 and A3 are not vocalized signals of acknowledgement and compliance. Instead, they appear to be indicating a move to a new stage in the conversation
as the participants terminate the present dialogue. Kumatoridani (1992) explains that instances of hai at
the end of a telephone conversation not only accept the content of the conversation that preceded but also
promote the progress of the conversation, helping to carry it through to its conclusion. Szatrowski (1993)
also claims that instances of hai at the end of a telephone conversation indicate a readiness to terminate
the conversation. Mizutani (1988) acknowledges that hai in similar cases helps the conversation proceed
and therefore interprets such instances as back-channels.
Mangajin (1993, p. 153) gives an example of a tailor who has been taking a customer's measurements
and then says the following to let the customer know that he is nished:
(ii) Hai, ii
desho.
good Cop-tentative
Òkay, that should do it.'
The explanation states that the hai is a `signal to end,' but strictly speaking, the hai here actually seems
to be paving the way for the tailor to state that they are nished, not closing o the conversation itself.
Most likely, the tailor is saying hai to get the customer's attention after the several moments of silence in
which he was measuring the customer's suit size, and thus, hai would be operating in what we have called
Function G (attention-getting). It appears that the hai is again serving as a promoter, smoothing the way
for the tailor as he grabs the customer0 s attention and then moves the conversation towards its conclusion.
83
The major exception to the idea of hai as a promoter is Function K, the repeated
use of the hai to cut o the conversation. In this case, the word hai seems to be
highly marked in that all one needs to do is to repeat it to send a quite specic signal, namely Ì don't want or need to hear anymore.' It appears that in saying ``hai,
hai, hai'', one reverses the ordinary back-channel meaning of the word (Function B)
through sarcasm. Why then don't ee and un, which also can be used as back-channel
noises, serve to cut o conversation when repeated?
One should note that hai, the only back-channel noise that has Function K, is the
most polite of the three words investigated here. This means that when it is used in
ordinary conversation, it hints at a degree of distance between the speaker and
addressee. When used with sarcasm, on the other hand, the ordinary politeness of
hai is inverted, switching from an amicable tone to a more formal, distant one. This
technique is one means of brushing o the other person and indicates that one wants
to end the conversation. Indeed, this appears to be happening with the use of hai in
Function K.
One must also note that the words ee and un place less, if any distance between
speaker and addressee. It is for this reason that ee and un are able to be used in
situations in which the speaker does not need to show a great deal of respect or
deference to the other person. Given the lack of a distancing eect, if one were to
attempt to use ee or un sarcastically, the result does not seem at all dismissive, hence
hai is the only back-channel noise able to produce the dismissive eect of Function
K. Over time, this eect may have crystallized in the utterance ``hai, hai, hai,'' which
serves almost as an idiomatic phrase. The strong tendency for people to repeat hai
specically two or three to produce dismissal suggests that the repeated hai has to
some degree become a set phrase.
In comparison to the word hai, the word un seems to be more strongly marked in
the sense it can be used in fewer situations and therefore carries a more specic
meaning. Of the six functions in which it can be used, four are related to acknowledgement of having heard, and two are related to the positive response. It may be
that the back-channel function of un is its primary function. It is not dicult to
imagine that if un was used as a back-channel in response to a YNQ, it might suggest a positive response. For instance, take the following example.
35. A: Ano hito -wa uta -ga
umai?
that person -Top songs -Nom good
Ìs that person good at singing?'
B: Un.
The intonation of the word un determines which function it would serve. If B
answered with a falling, quick, assured un, then it would have the meaning `yes' in
ordinary conversation and thus serve in Function A (positive response to a YNQ). If
B were to answer, however, with a hesitating, unsure un after a brief moment of
silence, then the un would not be a `yes' but a back-channel noise, namely Function
B. It may be that the falling, quick, assured un was originally a back-channel noise,
84
but it comes to mean yes because speaker B does not saying anything to deny the
statement. Since B does not deny the implication in A's question that it is good and
simply acknowledges the question rapidly and assuredly, it appears that B has no
opinion to the contrary. This argument draws on Grice's (1975) Maxim of Quantity, in which one expresses the greatest amount of information in as short an
utterance as possible. To acknowledge having heard the question and then state
that the assumption contained therein is true would include an extra step that
would be unnecessary. If one makes mention that one has heard the question and
does not do anything to deny the accuracy of the statement, then the implication is
probably that it is correct. Following this logic, un may fundamentally represent a
back-channel noise (Function B) but imply a positive response to a YNQ (Function
A) if nothing is done to deny the accuracy of the statement.
Unfortunately, back-channel noises and informal speech patterns were not frequently recorded in pre-modern texts so it would be dicult to trace the functions of
words like un in the distant past. Therefore, the hypothesis of un originating as a
back-channel noise and coming to adopt Function A would be dicult to test or
prove through historical linguistics.
The meaning of ee seems to be slightly more limited than that of un in that ee
cannot be used in Function F (response to a command or strong request). One
cannot explain this phenomenon through levels of politeness because un is even less
formal than ee, and ee is therefore not too informal to use in response to the strong
illocutionary force of a command.
It may, however, be that ee is a weaker sign of acknowledgement, or in other
words, less committal than un, which appears to be a sure sign of being heard.
If someone is being ordered or requested to do something, then that person
likely expects a sure sign that the person has heard, and ee might not provide
this assurance, unlike hai or un.13 The weakness of ee as a sign of assurance may
come from its phonetic nature. Unlike hai and un, which combine dierent
vowel and consonant sounds, ee consists of one vowel sound that is prolonged
or duplicated. This prolonging or duplication makes it dicult for the hearer
to perceive any clear or abrupt closure since, after all, the listener does not hear a
clear-cut, sharp ending to the sound. Function F requires a prompt, strong response,
and therefore, for phonetic reasons, ee may not provide an acceptably strong
response.
If this phonetic account is correct, then one can say that except in the case of
Function F where the two are dierentiated for reasons of sound quality, un and ee
function in roughly parallel fashions, and both cluster around the back-channel
functions. Again, just as in the case of un, one can easily imagine how ee started as a
pure back-channel noise (Function B) then expanded in its usage to take on the
meaning of a positive answer in response to a YNQ (Function A).
13
Kitagawa (1980) points out that it would sound ìnsincere' if ee were to be used in sentences like the
one cited in footnote 7 above.
85
5. Concluding remarks
In this paper, we have examined the functions of Japanese response words hai, ee,
and un. Contrary to what has been suggested in some earlier studies, their dierences do not lie merely in levels of formality or politeness. As we demonstrated
above, they function in signicantly dierent fashions. We have identied eleven
dierent functions in which hai can appear, ve for ee, and six for un. Of the three
words studied here, hai is the most inclusive word while ee the most restrictive. The
basic property of hai does not appear to lie in the domain of the ``response'' but
rather, in its strong illocutionary force as a ``promoter'' which sustains, advances, or
initiates discourse. Ee and un, on the other hand, do not seem to have this property
since they cannot appear without preceding utterances. Given this dierence, it
appears that their fundamental functions are as back-channels, even though they
have also come to take on the role as a positive response through extention. These
dierent functions and proposed fundamental properties are inferred solely from the
individual properties of each word as they manifest themselves in the various contexts in which they occur.
Acknowledgements
We thank Charles Quinn and the participants of the Japanese Pragmatics course
at The Ohio State University in Winter 1998 for their helpful input regarding the
issues discussed here. Of course, all shortcomings are solely our own.
References
Alfonso, A., 1966. Japanese Language Patterns. Sophia University L.L., Center of Applied Linguistics,
Tokyo.
Association for Japanese Language Teaching, 1994. Japanese for Busy People: Revised Edition, Part 1.
Kodansha International, Tokyo.
Grice, H.P., 1975. Logic and conversation. In: Coleand, P., Morgan, J. (Eds.), Syntax and Semantics 3:
Speech Acts. Academic Press, New York, pp. 4158.
Guruupu Jamashii (Eds.), 1998. Nihongo bunkei jiten. Kuroshio Publishers, Tokyo.
Hyuuga, S., 1980. Danwa-ni okeru `hai'-to èe' no kinoo. In: Kokuritsu Kokugo Kenkyuujo (Ed.), Kenkyuu Hookokushuu 2. Kokuritsu Kokugo Kenkyuusho, Tokyo, pp. 215229.
Ide, S., 1991. How and Why Do Women Speak Politely in Japanese? In: Ide, S., McGloin, N.H. (Eds.),
Aspects of Japanese Women's Languages. Kuroshio Publishers, Tokyo, pp. 6380.
Jorden, E., Noda, M., 1987. Japanese: The Spoken Language, Vol. 1. Yale University Press, New Haven, CT.
Kitagawa, C., 1980. Saying `yes' in Japanese. Journal of Pragmatics 4, 105120.
Komiya, C., 1986. Actual use of Àizuchi': tendencies manifested in two conversations. Daitoo Bunka
Daigaku Gogaku Kenkyuu Ronsoo 3, 4362.
Kumatoridani, T., 1992. Denwa kaiwa-no kaishi-to shuuketsu-ni okeru `hai'-to `moshimoshi'-to `ja'-no
danwa bunseki. Nihongogaku 9 (9), 1425.
Kuno, S., 1973. The Structure of the Japanese Language, MIT Press, Cambridge.
Mangajin (Ed.), 1993. Mangajin's Basic Japanese through Comics. Mangajin Inc., Marietta, GA.
Martin, S., 1962. Essential Japanese: An Introduction to the Standard Colloquial Language. Charles E.
Tuttle Company, Rutland, VT.
86
Matsuda, Y., 1988. Taiwa-no nihongo kyooikugaku: aizuchi ni kanren shite. Nihongogaku 7 (12), 5966.
Maynard, S., 1987. Nichibei kaiwa-ni okeru aizuchi hyoogen. Gengo 16 (12), 8892.
Mizutani, N., Mizutani, O., 1977. An Introduction to Modern Japanese. The Japan Times, Tokyo.
Mizutani, N., 1988. Aizuchiron. Nihongogaku 7 (12), 411.
Natsume, S., 1976. Ni-hyaku-tooka/Nowaki. Shichoo Bunkoo, Tokyo.
Okutsu, K., 1988. `Hai' to Èe' no kinoo. In: Inoue, K., (Ed.), Nihongo-no Fuhensei-to Kobetsusei-ni
kan-suru Rironteki Oyobi Jisshooteki Kenkyuu (Kenkyuu hookoku 4).
Okutsu, K., 1989. Ootooushi `hai' to ìie' no kinoo. Nihongogaku 8 (8), 414.
Onoe, A., 1997. Functions of Ne and its uses by learners. MA thesis, The Ohio State University.
Szatrowski, P., 1983. Nihongo-no Danwa-no Koozoobunseki: Kanyuu-no strategy-no koosatu. Kuroshio
Shuppan, Tokyo.
Takahashi, S., Nakayama, M., 1995. Conditions on Japanese Interrogative Sentences. Journal of Japanese Linguistics and Education 2, 3353 (Institute for Japanese Studies, Nagoya Gakuin University).
Tosaku, Y., 1994. Yookoso!: An Invitation to Contemporary Japanese. McGraw-Hill, Inc., New York.
Tsukuba Language Group, 1991. Situational Functional Japanese: Volume One: Drills. Bonjinsha,
Tokyo.
Yazaki, R., 1990. Nihongo kyoozai-ni miru `Hai' Ìie'. Toohoku Daigaku Nihongo Kyooiku Kenkyuu
Ronshuu 5, 2127.
Yngve, V., 1970. On getting a word in edgewise. In: Chicago Linguistics Society (Eds.), Papers from the
Sixth Regional Meeting of Chicago Linguistics Society. Chicago Linguistics Society, Chicago, pp. 567
578.
Young, J., Nakajima-Okano, K., 1984. Learn Japanese: New College Text, Vol. I. University of Hawaii
Press, Honolulu.

Japanese Responses Hai Ee and Un Yes No

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Japanese Responses Hai Ee and Un Yes No

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

Japanese responses hai, ee, and un: yes, no, and

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

11b. A. Jaa kocchi-ni sureba?

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

kore-mo ano kirei-desu.

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

because it sounds sti in comparison to the relative informality of the remainder of

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

elicits a response from Speaker B. The illocutionary force of eliciting information

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

B: Hai/ee, ikimashita -yo.

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

A: Hai. Soo iu mono -no eikyoo -ga

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

20a. A: Kore-kara sugu densha -ni notte kaeranai

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

In the original, the wife's utterance is as follows:

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

3.4. Function D: self-conrmation

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

3.5. Function E: a response to a suggestion

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

In this case, A's statement is a full-edged YNQ, and as we saw in Function A

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

3.8. Function H: a response to attention-getting

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

(i) Grandmother: Shiki

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

A: Positive response to YNQ

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

(i) A1: Mata denwa

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

J. Angles et al. / Language & Communication 20 (2000) 5586

You might also like