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Shopping For Clothes

When you buy yofuku (yohh-foo-koo; clothes), check out all the iro (ee-roh; colors) and pick the one that looks best on you.

• aka (ah-kah; red)
• ao (ah-oh; blue)
• chairo (chah-ee-roh; brown)
• kiro (keee-roh; yellow)
• kuro (koo-roh; black)
• midori (mee-doh-ree; green)
• murasaki (moo-rah-sah-kee; purple)
• orenji (oh-rehn-jee; orange)
• pinku (peen-koo; pink) )
• shiro (shee-roh; white)

If the salesperson shows you a color you're not crazy about, simply ask Chigau iro wa (chee-gah-oo ee-roh wah; Do you have a different color?)

Finding the right size

If you're in a store wondering whether an article of clothing is your saizu (sah-ee-zoo; size), ask the clerk Chotto kite mite mo ii desu ka (choht-toh kee-teh mee-teh moh eee deh-soo kah; Can I try it on a little?). If the clerk says okay, go to the shichakushitsu (shee-chah-koo-shee-tsoo; fitting room) and see whether it's a chodo ii (chohh-doh eee; exact fit). If not, you can use one of the following phrases:

• Chotto chisai desu. (choht-toh cheee-sah-ee deh-soo; A little small.)
• Chotto okii kana. (choht-toh ohh-keee kah-nah; Is it a little big for me?)
• Nagai desu. (nah-gah-ee deh-soo; It's long.)
• Sukoshi mijikai desu. (soo-koh-shee mee-jee-kah-ee deh-soo; A little short.)

When you want to try doing something, use the verb in the te-form and add miru. For example, kite miru (kee-teh mee-roo) means "to try wearing" or "to try on." Trying on clothes is important, but shopping for a T-shatsu (teee-shah-tsoo; T-shirt) is pretty easy. You can often avoid going to the shichakushitsu (shee-chah-koo-shee-tsoo; fitting room) if you know your size:

• S (eh-soo; small)
• M (eh-moo; medium)
• L (eh-roo; large)
• XL (ehk-koo-soo eh-roo; extra large)

Buying a dress is more complicated. Use the counter -go (gohh) when sizing up your choices.

Women's dress sizes in Japan are one size less than they are in the United States. Here are the rough equivalents for women's dress sizes:

Men's suit and coat sizes are expressed in letters in Japan. Compare American sizes and Japanese sizes:

In Japan, you specify length by using the metric system. If your waist is 30 inchi (sahn-jooo-een chee; 30 inches), it's 76.2 senchi (nah-nah-jooo-roh-koo tehn nee sehn-chee; 76.2 centimeters). To find your size in centimeters, multiply your size in inches by 2.54 (1 inch = 2.54 centimeters).