Invitation and Appointment Messages

Invitations and meeting arrangements

Invitation and meeting messages (誘い・待ち合わせ, さそい・まちあわせ, invitations and meeting arrangements) usually contain three things: the activity being proposed, the time and place to meet, and a request that the recipient must reply to. For this reason, readers must be able to distinguish the event time, the waiting time, and the reply deadline. Questions usually ask about one of these three things, so look for sentences that contain key words such as 「いつまでに」, 「何時に」, or 「どこで」.

Invitation patterns

• 〜ませんか — a soft invitation, meaning How about ...? It is used to invite the listener to do something together. Example: 「いっしょに映画を見に行きませんか。」
• 〜ましょう — a shared invitation or suggestion, meaning Let us ... It is used to propose a plan that the speaker has already decided. Example: 「駅の前で会いましょう。」
• 〜ことにしました — have decided to ... It is used to announce a decision that has been made, for example a change of place or time. Example: 「明日は公園で会うことにしました。」

Request patterns

• 〜てください — please ... This is the standard form for asking the listener to do something. Example: 「返事をください」 or 「来てください」.
• 〜てね — a casual form of 〜てください, used between friends. Example: 「明日の朝、連絡してね。」
• 〜てくれませんか / 〜てくれない？ — a soft request, meaning Could you ...? Example: 「お菓子を持って来てくれない？」
• 〜てほしい — want (you) to ... It expresses the speaker's wish that the listener do something. Example: 「本を返してほしい。」
• 〜ておいてください / 〜ておく — do something in advance, as preparation. Example: 「先に席を取っておいてください。」 In the past form 〜ておきました, it means have already done ... beforehand. Example: 「店の予約はしておきました。」
• 〜ておいた — the past form of 〜ておく, used to state that something has already been done in advance. Example: 「席はもう取っておいたよ。」

Time and deadlines

• 〜までに — by ... at the latest. It indicates a deadline that must be met. Example: 「金曜日までに申し込んでください。」
• 〜まで — until ... It indicates the end of a time span or a place. Unlike 〜までに, 〜まで does not express a deadline. Example: 「午後五時まで仕事があります。」
• 今日中 / 今週中 — throughout today or this week, or before today or this week ends. Example: 「今週中に返事をください。」
• 午前中 / 午後 — 午前中 means throughout the morning, while 午後 means from noon until evening. Example: 「午前中に用事が終わらないかもしれません。」
• 〜時半 / 〜時ごろ — 〜時半 means half past ... 〜時ごろ means around ... o'clock. Example: 「六時半ごろに駅で会いましょう。」
• 〜の回 — the ... showing, used for films. Example: 「午後の回の映画を見たい。」

Meeting places and conditions