失礼

See also: 失禮

Chinese

For pronunciation and definitions of 失礼 – see 失禮 (“to lack manners; to be impolite; to breach etiquette; I'm sorry; excuse me”). (This term is the simplified form of 失禮).
Notes: Simplified Chinese is mainly used in Mainland China, Malaysia, and Singapore. Traditional Chinese is mainly used in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.

Alternative spelling
失禮 (kyūjitai)

Probably from Middle Chinese compound 失禮／失礼 (syit lej^X, literally “lose, loss + propriety”). Compare modern Min Nan reading sit-lé.

失(しつ)礼(れい) • (shitsurei) -na (adnominal 失(しつ)礼(れい)な (shitsurei na), adverbial 失(しつ)礼(れい)に (shitsurei ni))

失(しつ)礼(れい) • (shitsurei)

rudeness, impoliteness
失(しつ)礼(れい)ですが。
Shitsurei desu ga.
It's a rudeness, but... → I don't mean to be rude, but...

失(しつ)礼(れい) • (shitsurei)

失(しつ)礼(れい)する • (shitsurei suru) suru (stem 失(しつ)礼(れい)し (shitsurei shi), past 失(しつ)礼(れい)した (shitsurei shita))

Used idiomatically to mean excuse me or I'm sorry. Examples include:

失(しつ)礼(れい)しました。

Shitsurei shimashita.

I was rude → I'm sorry. (in reference to a past action)

では、失(しつ)礼(れい)します。

De wa, shitsurei shimasu.

I will be rude → Excuse me (said at the end of a phone call just before hanging up)

お先(さき)に失(しつ)礼(れい)します。

O-saki ni shitsurei shimasu.

I will be rude by doing something first → Excuse me, I'm leaving now. (before other people leave)

Conjugation of "失礼する" (See Appendix:Japanese verbs.)

Katsuyōkei ("stem forms")
Mizenkei ("imperfective")	失礼し	しつれいし	shitsurei shi
Ren’yōkei ("continuative")	失礼し	しつれいし	shitsurei shi
Shūshikei ("terminal")	失礼する	しつれいする	shitsurei suru
Rentaikei ("attributive")	失礼する	しつれいする	shitsurei suru
Kateikei ("hypothetical")	失礼すれ	しつれいすれ	shitsurei sure
Meireikei ("imperative")	失礼せよ¹ 失礼しろ²	しつれいせよ¹ しつれいしろ²	shitsurei seyo¹ shitsurei shiro²
Key constructions
Passive	失礼される	しつれいされる	shitsurei sareru
Causative	失礼させる失礼さす	しつれいさせるしつれいさす	shitsurei saseru shitsurei sasu
Potential	失礼できる	しつれいできる	shitsurei dekiru
Volitional	失礼しよう	しつれいしよう	shitsurei shiyō
Negative	失礼しない	しつれいしない	shitsurei shinai
Negative continuative	失礼せず	しつれいせず	shitsurei sezu
Formal	失礼します	しつれいします	shitsurei shimasu
Perfective	失礼した	しつれいした	shitsurei shita
Conjunctive	失礼して	しつれいして	shitsurei shite
Hypothetical conditional	失礼すれば	しつれいすれば	shitsurei sureba
¹ Written imperative ² Spoken imperative

^ Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
^ NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute, editor (1998), NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 [NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary] (in Japanese), Tokyo: NHK Publishing, Inc., →ISBN

2002, Ineko Kondō; Fumi Takano; Mary E Althaus; et. al., Shogakukan Progressive Japanese-English Dictionary, Third Edition, Tokyo: Shōgakukan, →ISBN.