How to say "pray" in Japanese
Choosing the right word
- adverbCovers only the old politeness sense, as in 'pray, come in'. Here 'pray' is simply a courteous filler meaning 'please'; it has nothing to do with religious prayer or asking a deity.
- 祈るいのるgodan verb, transitive verbThe word you want for the core senses of 'pray', 'say a prayer' and 'say grace' — addressing God or a deity, whether in worship or in an earnest, heartfelt wish for something.
- 念じるねんじるichidan verb, transitive verbMatches 'pray (for)' in the sense of praying or wishing for a particular outcome. The nuance is closer to silently hoping or wishing something, often with a devotional flavor, rather than formal worship.
- 祭るまつるgodan verb, transitive verbGlossed 'pray', but this really means to worship or enshrine — honoring a deity or spirit. It is seldom the word for everyday prayer; think of acts of reverence toward a god rather than praying for something.
- 乞うこうgodan verb (irregular), transitive verbGlossed 'pray', but the primary sense is to beg or ask for something, as one begs a favor. 'Pray' here is archaic or figurative begging; it is rarely the natural choice for religious prayer.
Use 「祈る」 for actual prayer (religious worship or earnest wishing), 「どうぞ」 only for the polite 'pray, do' sense, 「念じる」 for praying for or wishing something, and note that 「乞う」 and 「祭る」 usually mean begging and enshrining respectively.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese equivalents
See also
This browser can't play pronunciations (needs Safari 18.4 or later, or Chrome / Edge / Firefox).
