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My friend tells me one is more polite. I think they're the same. Who's right?
When can I use one or the other?
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2011-06-17T15:14:37.923
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question
pronunciation set-phrases
Is there a difference between すみません (sumimasen) and すいません (suimasen)?
す **み** ません is the correct pronunciation, so on that count I suppose it would
be considered more polite by a very small margin. But just like in English,
people can be lazy with pronunciation, which is why you'll sometimes hear す
**い** ません. You also might run across す **ん** ません and す **ん** ま **へ** ん, but
from what I've read these are more Kansai-isms than anything else. When in
doubt, stick with the standard pronunciation, but in all cases the difference
is in pronunciation only (the meaning stays the same).
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2011-06-17T15:39:41.983
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2011-06-17T15:39:41.983
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If you compare these two phrases, すみません is more formal than すいません, and
therefore probably more polite.

すみません is literally the polite form of the negation of すむ (済む). 済む means to be
finished or completed.

> 宿題が済んだら遊びに行く。 (しゅくだいがすんだらあそびにいく。) Once the homework is done, I will go out
> to play.

すみません, whose literal meaning would be “It will not be finished,” means apology
probably because the speaker admits that what he/she did requires some follow-
up action.

すいません (suimasen) is the result of dropping the consonant “m” in すみません (su
**m** imasen) and is less formal than すみません.
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2011-06-17T15:46:29.677
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I asked some of my Japanese family, and they said some words are written
differently to how they’re said so すみません is the written way and すいません is the
commonly spoken way but すみません is seen as politer.
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2021-08-27T15:01:13.567
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2021-08-27T19:18:30.897
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