大丈夫 (daijōbu) means “all right,” “safe,” or “no problem.” In response to an offer, 大丈夫です may accept or decline depending on context, so add はい、お願いします to accept or いいえ、結構です to decline clearly. The same expression also checks whether someone is unhurt.
also daijoubu / daijobu / 大丈夫です / 大丈夫だった
it's fine, no problem · are you okay? · no thanks (a polite refusal)
Sentences
6 sentences, word by word
大丈夫ですか · concern
polite
？。
Hover, tap, or tab through the words.
大丈夫
だいじょうぶ ［3］
all right; okay
な-adjective · stands alone as a full question
大丈夫N5fine · okay
Ask Rikai
ですか
ですか
polite question
copula ＋ question particle · rising tone
Ask Rikai
顔色
かおいろ ［0］
complexion; colour in the face
noun · 顔 face ＋ 色 colour
Ask Rikai
が
が
marks the subject
particle · what the sentence is about — with 好き, 分かる and potentials, the object
Ask Rikai
悪い
わるい ［2］
bad; poor
い-adjective · with 顔色 it means looking unwell
Ask Rikai
ですよ
ですよ
polite, with new information
です ＋ よ · telling them something they may not have noticed
Ask Rikai
Are you all right? You look pale.
大丈夫です · reassuring
polite
、。
Hover, tap, or tab through the words.
大丈夫
だいじょうぶ ［3］
I'm fine
な-adjective · falling tone, which makes it the answer
大丈夫N5fine · okay
Ask Rikai
です
です
polite copula
copula · な-adjectives take です with no な
Ask Rikai
全然
ぜんぜん ［0］
not at all
adverb · classically paired with a negative
Ask Rikai
痛くない
いたくない
doesn't hurt
negative of 痛い · い becomes くない
痛いN5it hurts
Ask Rikai
です
です
polite copula
copula · attaches to the plain negative adjective
Ask Rikai
から
から
because; so
particle · giving the reason behind the reassurance
Ask Rikai
I'm fine, thanks — it doesn't hurt at all.
大丈夫です · declining at a till
polite
。
Hover, tap, or tab through the words.
袋
ふくろ ［3］
bag
noun · the plastic or paper bag at a shop counter
Ask Rikai
は
は
as for — the topic
particle · written は, read わ
Ask Rikai
大丈夫
だいじょうぶ ［3］
no thanks; I'm fine without
な-adjective · the refusal sense, standard at a counter
大丈夫N5no thanks · fine
Ask Rikai
です
です
polite copula
copula · the です is what keeps the refusal polite
Ask Rikai
No thanks, I don't need a bag.
〜ても大丈夫ですか · asking permission
polite
？
Hover, tap, or tab through the words.
ここ
ここ
here
demonstrative · the spot near the speaker
Ask Rikai
に
に
to; at; into
particle · a point something reaches — a place, a time, a person, or a state
Ask Rikai
座って
すわって
sit and
て-form of 座る · takes も to make 'even if'
Ask Rikai
も
も
even if
particle · ても is the concessive that 大丈夫 answers
Ask Rikai
大丈夫
だいじょうぶ ［3］
okay; all right
な-adjective · the permission-checking frame
大丈夫N5okay · fine
Ask Rikai
ですか
ですか
polite question
copula ＋ question particle
Ask Rikai
Is it okay if I sit here?
大丈夫だった · looking back
plain past
。
Hover, tap, or tab through the words.
台風
たいふう ［3］
typhoon
noun · 台風が来る is the standard collocation
Ask Rikai
は
は
as for — the topic
particle · written は, read わ
Ask Rikai
ひどかった
ひどかった
was terrible
past of ひどい · い swaps for かった
Ask Rikai
けど
けど
but
conjunction · casual; が or けれども in writing
Ask Rikai
家
いえ ［2］
house; home
noun · いえ the building, うち your household
Ask Rikai
は
は
as for — the topic
particle · written は, read わ
Ask Rikai
大丈夫
だいじょうぶ ［3］
was fine; came through okay
な-adjective · past uses だった, not かった
大丈夫N5fine · okay
Ask Rikai
だった
だった
was
past plain copula · でした in polite speech
Ask Rikai
The typhoon was bad, but the house was fine.
お願いします · accepting clearly
polite
、。
Hover, tap, or tab through the words.
はい
はい ［1］
yes
interjection · answering the offer before explaining
Ask Rikai
袋
ふくろ ［3］
bag
noun · the same word the staff just used
Ask Rikai
を
を
marks the direct object
particle · pronounced お
Ask Rikai
お願いします
おねがいします
please; I'd like one
humble request · the unambiguous way to accept
Ask Rikai
Yes please, I'd like a bag.
Forms
The four jobs 大丈夫 does
大丈夫＋ですか
Are you okay? Concern for the person in front of you. Rising tone, and often just 大丈夫? between friends.
大丈夫＋です
I'm fine. Reassurance, usually with a small wave of the hand. Falling tone, which is most of what separates it from the question.
Offer＋大丈夫です
No thanks. 袋は大丈夫です — I don't need a bag. This use is newer, extremely common among younger speakers, and the source of most of the confusion.
Verb ＋ ても＋大丈夫ですか
Is it okay if I ~? 座っても大丈夫ですか. A softer alternative to 〜てもいいですか, and very common in shops and offices.
Meaning
Why 大丈夫です can mean no
The core of 大丈夫 is nothing needs to be done. Applied to a person who fell over, that means they are unhurt. Applied to an offer, it means the situation is already fine without it — which is a refusal wearing the clothes of reassurance.
Context usually settles it, and sometimes it does not. After 袋、ご利用ですか — do you want a bag — 大丈夫です means no. After 手伝いましょうか it can go either way, which is why staff often follow up with よろしいですか to be sure.
結構です usually declines an offer, though it can also mean “sufficient.” The trade-off is register: it is a shade formal and, said flatly, can sound cold. いいえ、大丈夫です with a small head shake is the natural middle ground.
To accept, say so positively.お願いします — yes please — is unambiguous, short, and the single most useful thing you can have ready at a counter. If you only remember one repair for this whole page, make it that one.
Inside the kanji
大丈夫 — from a full-grown man to a full-grown reassurance
丈夫 — sturdy, hard-wearing
On its own 丈夫（じょうぶ）means durable: 丈夫な靴, shoes that last. Add 大 and you get something like “thoroughly sound,” which is where the reassurance comes from.
The Chinese original
In classical Chinese 大丈夫 described a grown man of standing — a real man, in the heroic sense. Japanese kept the characters and moved the meaning to the quality itself: reliable, sound, nothing to worry about.
The context-dependent reply
大丈夫です can express acceptance or refusal of an offer in current usage. When the distinction matters, add an explicit yes or no so the listener need not infer it from context.
Watch out
Where 大丈夫 goes wrong
Answering an offer with a bare 大丈夫です
The clerk will usually read it as no. If you want the thing, say お願いします; if you do not, 大丈夫です or 結構です both work. Never rely on the tone alone.
Adding な before です
大丈夫です, not 大丈夫なです. な-adjectives only take な in front of a noun — 大丈夫な人.
Using 大丈夫かった for the past
It is a な-adjective, so the past is 大丈夫だった / 大丈夫でした. The かった ending belongs to い-adjectives only.
Also asked
Questions people ask about 大丈夫
Does 大丈夫です mean yes or no?
In answer to an offer, it often means no — I'm fine without it — but context can also make it an acceptance. In answer to “are you okay?”, it means yes, I'm fine. If you are accepting something, say お願いします instead and remove the doubt.
大丈夫 or 結構です for refusing?
結構です normally declines an offer, so it is the safer choice when clarity matters. It is slightly formal and can land cold, so いいえ、大丈夫です is the everyday middle ground.
Is 大丈夫 an い-adjective?
No — it ends in い but it is a な-adjective. That means 大丈夫な人 before a noun and 大丈夫だった in the past, never 大丈夫かった.
What's the difference between 大丈夫 and 平気?
平気 is about being unbothered — unfazed by the cold, by heights, by criticism. 大丈夫 is about nothing being wrong. A person who fell over is asked 大丈夫?; someone shrugging off a spider is 平気.
How do I ask permission with 大丈夫?
〜ても大丈夫ですか — 写真を撮っても大丈夫ですか, is it okay if I take a photo. It is a touch softer than 〜てもいいですか and very common in shops.
Why do I hear 大丈夫? as a whole sentence?
Because it is one. Japanese drops subjects freely, and 大丈夫? with a rising tone is complete on its own. The polite version just adds ですか.
