Dictionary / Japanese / Really
How to Say "Really" in Japanese
本当
hontō
Literally: The truth, the real thing
Polite or casual
Polite本当ですか (hontō desu ka)
Casualほんと (honto) / マジ (maji)
本当？ with a rising voice is "really?" with friends and family, and many people shorten it to ほんと？ To ask politely, add ですか: 本当ですか. そうなんですか (sō nan desu ka), is that so?, is a gentle polite reaction too. マジ (maji) is slang for "seriously". It is common among friends and younger people, but best avoided with teachers, customers and in formal work situations.
Correct
本当
What people say wrong
マジ
Seriously? Slang. Fine with friends, best avoided in formal situations.
The mistake to avoid. Learners hear マジ in anime and on TV and start using it everywhere. It is slang, so with anyone you speak politely to, 本当ですか or そうなんですか sounds better. A second trap: to say "really" in front of an adjective or a thank-you, use 本当に (hontō ni), truly. Say 本当に美味しい (hontō ni oishii), it is really delicious. You may hear ほんと美味しい in very casual speech, but 本当に is the safe form.
In context
え、本当？
E, hontō?
What, really? (casual)
本当ですか。よかったですね。
Hontō desu ka. Yokatta desu ne.
Really? That is good news.
本当にありがとうございました。
Hontō ni arigatō gozaimashita.
Thank you so much.