LESSON NOTES · レッスンノート

N5Lesson notes · Oct 11, 2026

Beer in Japanese: ビール (biiru), 生なまビール, とりあえず and how to order one

Beer in Japanese is ビール (biiru), written in katakana and pronounced with a long "ii", so you hold the vowel in ビ for two beats: bi-i-ru, three beats in all, not the English "beer".

The word is easy to learn and surprisingly easy to say wrong. One missing vowel turns your drink into a building.

The basics

How do you say beer in Japanese?

ビール (biiru) is the standard word, and it is a loanword written in katakana. It came into Japanese from a European word (bier), not from English, and it is pronounced with Japanese sounds, so it differs from the English word. The reading in hiragana is びーる, but you will almost always see it in katakana.

ビールをください。 — Beer, please. (polite, ordering) ビールを飲のみます。 — I drink beer. (polite, habit or plan)

Like any drink, ビール takes を when the verb is 飲のむ. If you want the verb on its own, see how to say "drink" in Japanese.

Why does the long vowel matter so much?

Because ビル (biru) and ビール (biiru) are two different words: ビル is a building, ビール is beer. The only difference is the stretch on the first vowel. In katakana the long vowel is written with the dash ー, so ビール has three beats: bi, i, ru, with the "bi-i" held for two beats and not cut short.

Word Reading Meaning
ビール biiru beer
ビル biru building

Say "bii" as long as "ta-ta". The r is a quick tap of the tongue, the same sound as in Spanish "pero", not the English r.

ビールをお願ねがいします。 — A beer, please. (polite, ordering from staff) あのビルは高たかいですね。 — That building is tall, isn't it? (polite, small talk)

ビル (biru) with a short vowel is a different word, "building". Staff will usually guess what you mean, but practice the length so it comes out right.

What is 生なまビール, and what does 生なま mean?

生なまビール (nama biiru) is beer that has not been heat-treated, and in restaurants it means draft beer poured from a tap. 生なま (nama) means "raw" or "fresh". Some canned and bottled beers also say 生なま on the label, because the word describes the brewing, not the container. But on an izakaya menu, 生なま on its own means the tap beer.

生なまビールをひとつください。 — One draft beer, please. (polite, ordering one) 生なまで。 — Draft, please. (short, said when the staff already asked about drinks)

You will also see 中生ちゅうなま (chuunama), which is a medium-size mug of draft beer, and sometimes 大だい生なま for large. Think of 中なか as "medium", the same as in M-size clothes. 中なか is a name, not a fixed volume: the size depends on the shop, so ask if it matters.

A short order puts it together:

お飲み物のみものは? — Anything to drink? (staff) 生なまビールを二杯にはいお願ねがいします。 — Two draft beers, please. (you) サイズはいかがなさいますか。 — What size would you like? (staff, very polite) 中なかでお願ねがいします。 — Medium, please. (you)

Once the staff have asked about drinks, you can shorten your answer to 生なまで。

What does とりあえず生なま mean?

とりあえず生なま means "draft beer for now", and it is the classic first order at a Japanese drinking table. とりあえず means "for the time being" or "to start with". When a group sits down, the organizer often checks that everyone wants beer, then orders it in one go. Drinks arrive fast, and then people look at the menu with calmer minds.

とりあえず、生なまを一杯いっぱいお願ねがいします。 — One draft beer to start, please. (polite, ordering for yourself) とりあえず、生なまを三杯さんばいお願ねがいします。 — Three draft beers to start, please. (polite, after checking that all three want beer) とりあえず、ビールで。 — Beer for now. (casual, first order, the で marks the choice)

とりあえず生なま on its own does not say how many. When you order for a group, add the number or let the staff ask. The で here is the "I'll go with" で, the same shape as 紅茶こうちゃで ("tea for me") when choosing from a list.

How do you say "cheers"?

乾杯かんぱい (kanpai) is "cheers", said when you raise your glasses for a toast. Literally it means "dry the cup". The group says it together, usually after the first drinks arrive and before anyone takes a sip.

乾杯かんぱい! — Cheers! (for everyone, the standard toast) それでは、乾杯かんぱい! — Well then, cheers! (slightly formal, said by the host)

If the group plans a toast, wait for 乾杯かんぱい before the first sip. After that, drink at your own pace.

Beyond the basics

How do you count beer: 一杯いっぱい, 一本いっぽん or 一缶ひとかん?

Use 杯はい (hai) for glasses and mugs, and 本ほん (hon) for bottles. Cans are counted 本ほん in everyday speech, and 缶かん (kan) also works. The counter changes with the container, not with the beer.

Container Counter One Two Three
Glass, mug (draft) 杯はい いっぱい にはい さんばい
Bottle 本ほん いっぽん にほん さんぼん
Can (also 本ほん) 缶かん いっかん にかん さんかん

The sound changes (はい, ぱい, ばい) are the usual counter shifts, explained in how to count in Japanese.

生なまビールを二杯にはいください。 — Two draft beers, please. (polite, counting glasses) 瓶びんビールを三本さんぼんお願ねがいします。 — Three bottles of beer, please. (polite, at a place that serves bottled beer) 缶ビールかんびーるを一本いっぽん買かいました。 — I bought one can of beer. (polite, past, 一本いっぽん is the everyday way to count a can)

一缶ひとかん is also correct but sounds stiffer. In real speech people often just say the number with ひとつ or ふたつ ("one, two") for a casual order. The container word is the thing to learn first.

What are 発泡はっぽう酒さけ and 第三だいさんのビール?

発泡はっぽう酒さけ is a beer-style drink that the liquor tax law classes separately from beer, by ingredients such as the malt ratio, and 第三だいさんのビール is an informal nickname for the beer-style drinks long sold as the "new genre". 発泡はっぽう酒さけ (happoushu) literally means "sparkling alcohol", and 第三だいさんのビール (daisan no biiru) means "the third beer". Since October 2023 those cheaper drinks are classed as 発泡はっぽう酒さけ too, so they are not a separate legal category. In October 2026 the tax rates for beer-style drinks were unified, but the categories still appear on labels. You do not need to order by these names. Just recognize them on a label.

これはビールですか、それとも発泡はっぽう酒さけですか。 — Is this beer, or is it happoushu (a cheaper beer-style drink)? (polite, asking about a drink)

How do you describe alcohol tolerance?

Use お酒さけに強つよい (strong with alcohol) and お酒さけに弱よわい (weak with alcohol). お酒さけ is the general word for alcohol, and に marks the thing you are strong or weak against.

私わたしはお酒さけに強つよいです。 — I can hold my alcohol. (polite, self-description) 彼かれはビール一杯いっぱいで酔よいます。 — He gets drunk on one glass of beer. (polite, describing someone) お酒さけに弱よわいので、ビールは少すこしだけにします。 — I have a low tolerance for alcohol, so I'll just have a little beer. (polite, telling your group your plan)

酔よう (you) means to get drunk, and 二日酔ふつかよい (futsukayoi) means a hangover, literally "two-day drunk". Morning-after conversations include this word a lot.

昨日きのう飲のみすぎて、二日酔ふつかよいです。 — I drank too much yesterday, and I have a hangover. (polite, explaining a hangover)

What is 飲み放題のみほうだい?

飲み放題のみほうだい (nomihoudai) means "all you can drink", a fixed-time deal at many izakaya. You pay once and keep ordering within the time limit. Check what the deal covers: draft beer is not always included. For the whole event around this, see nomikai and bureikou, the Japanese drinking party.

飲み放題のみほうだいにしますか。 — Shall we do all-you-can-drink? (polite, an organizer asking the group) 飲み放題のみほうだいになさいますか。 — Would you like all-you-can-drink? (very polite, staff asking) この飲み放題のみほうだいに生なまビールは含ふくまれていますか。 — Is draft beer included in this all-you-can-drink? (polite, asking staff) 二時間にじかんの飲み放題のみほうだいでお願ねがいします。 — Two hours of all-you-can-drink, please. (polite, ordering)

What if you do not want alcohol: ノンアル?

ノンアル (nonaru) is the short form of ノンアルコール, "non-alcoholic", and on its own it does not say which drink. For the beer-style one, say ノンアルビール. Many places have ノンアルコールビール. ノンアルでお願ねがいします alone works only when the context already makes the drink clear.

ノンアルビールはありますか。 — Do you have non-alcoholic beer? (polite, asking at a restaurant) ノンアルビールでお願ねがいします。 — Non-alcoholic beer, please. (polite, ordering)

ノンアル is not only for beer. If you just want a soft drink, ask ソフトドリンクはありますか, or order お水みず or お茶ちゃ directly. See water in Japanese and tea in Japanese.

Why is beer sometimes written 麦酒びーる?

麦酒びーる is a kanji way of writing ビール, and it can be read ビール or ばくしゅ. 麦むぎ stands for grains such as barley and 酒さけ is alcohol, so 麦酒びーる suggests a drink made from grain. You will see it on old-fashioned signs, in novels, or as a stylish touch. For N5 you only need to recognize it, and ビール in katakana is what you write every day.

How does ビール sound in drinking scenes?

In izakaya scenes in anime and dramas, a common pattern is an order, a toast, and a sigh after the first sip. You may hear ぷはー or くぅー right after the sip, and 乾杯かんぱい just before it. Notice that the drink is often just 生なま or ビール in the order, with no number: the staff and the table fill in the rest.

ぷはー、やっぱりビールだ! — Ahh, nothing beats beer! (casual, after the first sip) みんな、乾杯かんぱい! — Everyone, cheers! (casual, raising a glass)

Common mistakes

  • Saying ビル for beer. ビル is a building. Hold the ー: ビール, two beats on "bii".
  • Writing ビールー. The long mark goes right after ビ and nothing follows ル: ビール. (ビイル is an old spelling. Today, write ビール.)
  • Using 一杯いっぱい for bottles. Glasses and mugs are 杯はい. Bottles and cans are 本ほん.

Practice

Build each answer before opening it. Questions 1 and 2 are a pair, the same sounds with one stretched vowel.

1. Say "beer" in Japanese, in katakana.

Show answer

ビール — the long vowel ー is written as a dash.

2. What does ビル mean?

Show answer

A building — ビール (beer) and ビル (building) differ only in length.

3. At an izakaya you say 生なまを一杯いっぱいお願ねがいします. What arrives?

Show answer

A draft beer — on an izakaya menu, 生なま is beer from the tap. On a can label, 生なま means the beer was not heat-treated.

4. Two friends both want beer. Order two draft beers to start, in polite Japanese.

Show answer

とりあえず、生なまを二杯にはいお願ねがいします — とりあえず means "for now", and 二杯にはい gives the number.

5. You want four mugs of draft beer. Which counter, and how is it read?

Show answer

四よ杯はい (よんはい) — glasses and mugs use 杯はい, and 四よ is read よん before it.

6. You want five bottles of beer. Which counter, and how is it read?

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五ご本ほん (ごほん) — bottles use 本ほん. After 五ご it stays ほん, unlike ぼん after 三さん.

7. How do you say "cheers" when you raise your glasses?

Show answer

乾杯かんぱい — it is said together after the first drinks arrive.

8. Say "I have a low tolerance for alcohol" in polite Japanese.

Show answer

お酒さけに弱よわいです — に marks what you are weak against. The opposite is お酒さけに強つよいです.

9. You do not want alcohol but want a beer-style drink. How do you order it?

Show answer

ノンアルビールでお願ねがいします — ノンアル alone does not say which drink, so add ビール.

10. How can 麦酒びーる be read, and what do the characters mean?

Show answer

ビール or ばくしゅ — 麦むぎ is a grain such as barley and 酒さけ is alcohol.

Order a round in a trial lesson role-play: とりあえず生なま, a toast, and a count of glasses and bottles.

FAQ

Can I say "beer" in English at a Japanese bar? Staff will often understand it, but the Japanese pronunciation of ビール is more natural and clearer. Just remember to hold the long vowel.

Can とりあえず go before other drinks? Yes. とりあえず just means "to start with". If you do not want beer, say とりあえず烏龍茶うーろんちゃ, "oolong tea for now", or とりあえず、ノンアルビールで.

How do I turn down a drink? Say お酒さけは飲のめません ("I can't drink alcohol"), 今日きょうは飲のみません ("I won't drink today") or 今日きょうはお茶ちゃにします ("I'll have tea today"). You do not have to give a reason.

How old do you need to be to order ビール in Japan? Drinking alcohol is allowed from age 20 in Japan, even though adulthood starts at 18. If you are not sure someone is 20 or older, offer ジュース or お茶ちゃ, not お酒さけ.

Vocabulary from this article

Tap the block to select all of it, then copy. In Anki: File → Import, note type Basic, separator Tab, and each line becomes one card.

ビール	びーる — beer
生ビール	なまビール — unpasteurized beer; usually draft beer when ordering
中生	ちゅうなま — medium mug of draft beer
とりあえず	とりあえず — for now, to start with
乾杯	かんぱい — cheers
杯	はい — counter for glasses and mugs
本	ほん — counter for bottles
缶	かん — can, counter for cans
発泡酒	はっぽうしゅ — beer-style drink classed separately from beer
第三のビール	だいさんのビール — "third beer" (nickname for cheaper beer-style drinks)
お酒	おさけ — alcohol
強い	つよい — strong
弱い	よわい — weak
酔う	よう — to get drunk
二日酔い	ふつかよい — hangover
飲み放題	のみほうだい — all you can drink
ノンアル	のんある — non-alcoholic (short form; say ノンアルビール for the beer-style drink)
麦酒	ビール、ばくしゅ — beer (kanji spelling)
飲む	のむ — to drink
ビル	びる — building

I'm Yuuki, a Japanese teacher based in Tokyo. I've taught on italki as a Top 1% teacher and watched over 1,500 anime, so most of the example sentences on this blog come from lines I've actually heard in class and on screen, and とりあえず生なま is a set phrase you will often hear at izakaya. For practice with feedback, Book a trial lesson · $13, or work through Japanese practice exercises first.

Sources: the author's own lessons and standard reference grammars.

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