お客様・お客さま|おきゃくさまokyakusama[4]nakadaka (mid-high)

1. nounguest; visitor
2. nouncustomer; client; shopper; spectator; audience; tourist; sightseer; passenger
   お客様きゃくさまのサイズは切きらしてしまっているようですが。↗

   I think we're out of your size.

• Synonym客きゃくWrittenRead 「まろうど」: an archaic word for a guest from afar or one who calls at your door; almost never used in modern speech — say 「お客様」 or 「来客」.
• Synonym訪問者ほうもんしゃNeutralAn objective word for someone who visits, with no honorific sense; covers real visits and website visits, as in 「訪問者数」. To address someone directly, use 「お客様」.
• SynonymゲストNeutralA loanword for an invited guest; often a special guest on a TV or radio show or at an event. Unlike 「お客様」, it is not a blanket term for shop customers.
• SynonymビジターNeutralA loanword for a visitor; in sports it means the away team, and at golf courses and the like a non-member guest. Not used as an honorific.
• Synonym顧客こきゃくWrittenA business's customers or clientele, in a business/written register, as in 「顧客満足度」; not used face to face — address people as 「お客様」.
• Synonym客人きゃくじんWrittenRead 「まろうど」: a classical-flavoured word for a guest who calls at your door; not used in modern daily life — 「お客様」 is all you need.
• SynonymカスタマーNeutralA loanword for customer, used mostly in compounds like 「カスタマーサービス」 and rarely alone; when addressing people, say 「お客様」.
• Synonymお客さんおきゃくさんCasualMore casual than 「お客様」; shop staff use it for familiar customers or guests at home. For formal reception, announcements or writing, 「お客様」 is the safe choice.
• Synonym来訪者らいほうしゃWrittenAn objective, rather formal word for a visitor, seen in registers and notices, e.g. 「来訪者名簿」; it lacks the respect built into 「お客様」.
• Related買い手かいてNeutralThe buyer's side in a transaction, opposed to the seller; carries no honorific sense, as in 「買い手市場」. It cannot be used to address a customer.
• Related賓客ひんきゃくFormalAn important, honoured guest — grander than 「お客様」; used in diplomacy, ceremonies and other formal settings, not for ordinary customers.
• Related取引先とりひきさきNeutralA company or client you do business with; stresses the business relationship, as in 「取引先との会議」. Not used for walk-in customers at a shop.
• Related来賓らいひんFormalGuests invited to a ceremony or formal event, as in 「来賓挨拶」; strictly for formal occasions — it never refers to shop customers.
• Related来客らいきゃくNeutralA visitor who has come, used in fairly objective narration, as in 「来客中」 or 「来客数」; not for addressing someone directly — say 「お客様」.
• Related得意先とくいさきNeutralRegular customers or clients you deal with repeatedly; business-flavoured, as in 「得意先回り」; stresses a long-term trading relationship.
• Related依頼者いらいしゃWrittenSomeone who commissions work, such as a lawyer's or detective's client; stresses the request relationship, not a shopper or a visitor.
• Related観光客かんこうきゃくNeutralSpecifically a sightseer, as in 「外国人観光客」; 「お客様」 is an honorific for guests of every kind, not just tourists.
• RelatedクライアントNeutralA loanword for a client who commissions work, common in advertising, design, law and similar fields; also means the client side of a computer system.
• Related訪客ほうきゃくWrittenA written word for a visiting guest, now very rare; in everyday speech say 「来客」 or 「お客様」.
• Related見舞い客みまいきゃくNeutralSpecifically someone who visits a sick or troubled person, as in 「見舞い客が多い」; its use is far narrower than 「お客様」.
• Antonym店主てんしゅNeutralIn the shop setting this is the opposite of 「お客様」: the owner who runs the shop and serves the customers who come in.
• Antonym主人しゅじんNeutralThe opposite of the guest at home or in a shop: the head of the household or the shop's owner; also a common way to refer to one's own husband.
• Antonym主あるじWrittenThe opposite of the guest: head of a household, shop owner or master of a place; more literary and archaic than 「主人」, and it can also mean playing host.
• Antonym亭主ていしゅNeutralThe opposite of the guest: an innkeeper or the host of a tea gathering; colloquially also one's husband, with a slightly old-fashioned ring.

For customers, passengers or guests in a service setting, 「お客様」 is the default; drop to 「お客さん」 in casual talk. For business clients use 「顧客」 or 「取引先」; guests invited to ceremonies are 「来賓」; to state objectively that someone came, use 「来客」. The loanwords ゲスト, ビジター, クライアント and カスタマー each cover narrower cases, and the antonyms 店主, 主人, 主 and 亭主 name the host side.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. 「客きゃく」をより丁寧ていねいに言いう語ご。