How to pronounce "shiremasen" in English
ˌʃiː.rɛ.məˈsɛn
shee·re·mə·SEN
Primary stress: SEN
Hear native speakers say shiremasen in context across real video clips
Ee, jinshu sabetsu, kore wa racial discrimination to iu kotoba desu. Ato, kunyomi nandesu keredomo, ee chotto idiomatic tsukaikata kamo shiremasen. Tatoeba, sashiagari, for the time being.
Linguistic Pronunciation Masterclass: “shiremasen”
Phonetic mechanics, syllable architecture, and conversational cadence
Syllable Architecture & Stress Distribution
shee
Neutral schwa (⁄ə⁄): relaxed jaw, brief unstressed breath.
re
Neutral schwa (⁄ə⁄): relaxed jaw, brief unstressed breath.
mə
Neutral schwa (⁄ə⁄): relaxed jaw, brief unstressed breath.
SEN
Tense long vowel with sustained acoustic resonance.
Primary emphasis falls on the fourth syllable ("SEN"). Raise your pitch and sustain the vowel length on this syllable while relaxing the surrounding syllables.
Common Pronunciation Traps & Learner Mistakes
The Trap: Avoid pronouncing every vowel with full acoustic weight. Non-native speakers often over-enunciate unstressed vowels.
How Native Speakers Say It: Only give full vowel clarity to the primary stressed syllable. Relax all unstressed vowels into a neutral, low-energy schwa (⁄ə⁄).
Connected Speech & Natural Conversational Flow
When "shiremasen" is followed by a word starting with a vowel, glide the final consonant into the opening vowel (e.g. "shiremasen is" sounds like "shiremasen-iz").
Maintain the stress-timed rhythm of English: compress unstressed syllables rapidly so the beat of "shiremasen" aligns naturally with adjacent words.
Authentic Spoken Quotes from Native Video Context
“Ato, kunyomi nandesu keredomo, ee chotto idiomatic tsukaikata kamo shiremasen.”— MIT OpenCourseWareWatch clip
“Ma konna oboekata de ii kamo, shiremasen.”— MIT OpenCourseWareWatch clip
“Nani ka ko, mukashi na scale ga atte, de, scale both sides in balance, ma konna oboekata ga ii kamo shiremasen.”— MIT OpenCourseWareWatch clip
Practice Speaking “shiremasen”
Listen to native pronunciation, record yourself repeating the sentence into your microphone, and receive real-time word-by-word accuracy scoring.
Ato, kunyomi nandesu keredomo, ee chotto idiomatic tsukaikata kamo shiremasen.
Hear it in context: “shiremasen”
3 clipsThe English word “shiremasen” is transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) as ˌʃiː.rɛ.məˈsɛn (phonetic respelling: shee-re-mə-SEN). Phonologically, it consists of 4 syllables (shee · re · mə · SEN), with primary lexical stress placed on the 4th syllable (SEN). Grammatically, “shiremasen” functions as a interjection. SayItVid indexes 3 authentic English video clips demonstrating how native speakers articulate “shiremasen” in natural connected speech across American (US: 3 sampled), British (UK), and Australian (AUS) accents, including verified broadcasts from MIT OpenCourseWare.
Spoken Video Transcripts & Contextual Quotes (3 Verified Clips)
- 🇺🇸 USMIT OpenCourseWareClip #1 · @23:45
“Ee, jinshu sabetsu, kore wa racial discrimination to iu kotoba desu. Ato, kunyomi nandesu keredomo, ee chotto idiomatic tsukaikata kamo shiremasen. Tatoeba, sashiagari, for the time being.”
- 🇺🇸 USMIT OpenCourseWareClip #2 · @16:57
“pairs of eyes, kore ga eyes, to fix a corner not made at a right angle. Ma konna oboekata de ii kamo, shiremasen. Yomikata nan desu keredomo, eeto choku, jiki, jika to iu yomikata ga arun desuga, tatoeba”
- 🇺🇸 USMIT OpenCourseWareClip #3 · @1:52
“De, ma oboekata nan desu keredomo, a scale with both sides in balance. Nani ka ko, mukashi na scale ga atte, de, scale both sides in balance, ma konna oboekata ga ii kamo shiremasen. ga ii kamo shiremasen.”
Definition & Meaning: “shiremasen”
- A polite Japanese negative expression meaning 'I am sorry' or 'excuse me'.
Example Sentences (3)
- “He bowed and said shiremasen when he bumped into the customer.”
- “Ato, kunyomi nandesu keredomo, ee chotto idiomatic tsukaikata kamo shiremasen.”
- “Ma konna oboekata de ii kamo, shiremasen.”
Common Phrases & Collocations
Pronounce: “shiremasen”
- Pronunciation:
- shee-re-mə-SEN
- Syllables:
- shee · re · mə · SEN
- Written Hyphenation:
- shi · re · ma · sen
- Primary stress:
- SEN
- IPA:
- ˌʃiː.rɛ.məˈsɛn
- Hear it in context
- shiremasen
Words that Rhyme with “shiremasen”
-ɛnWords that Sound Identical (Homophones)
Unique Sound"shiremasen" (⁄ˌʃiː.rɛ.məˈsɛn⁄) has no true homophones in standard English — there are no other words with identical pronunciation. Unlike sound-alike pairs like there / their or peace / piece, "shiremasen" has a completely distinct phonetic identity.
Frequently asked questions about shiremasen
How do you pronounce “shiremasen”?
“shiremasen” is pronounced ⁄ˌʃiː.rɛ.məˈsɛn⁄ (shee-re-mə-SEN). Listen to the native-speaker clips above to hear it in real conversation.
How many syllables are in “shiremasen”?
“shiremasen” has 4 syllables: shee · re · mə · SEN.
Where is the stress in “shiremasen”?
The primary stress in “shiremasen” is on “SEN”. Listen for that stressed syllable in the clips above.
What does “shiremasen” mean?
A polite Japanese negative expression meaning 'I am sorry' or 'excuse me'.
How can I hear “shiremasen” used in real sentences?
This page has 3 real-world video examples of “shiremasen” with synchronized subtitles. Use Previous / Next (or ← / → keys) to hear each one at the exact moment it is spoken.
What is the most common pronunciation mistake when saying “shiremasen”?
Avoid pronouncing every vowel with full acoustic weight. Non-native speakers often over-enunciate unstressed vowels. Only give full vowel clarity to the primary stressed syllable. Relax all unstressed vowels into a neutral, low-energy schwa (⁄ə⁄).