Tokyo phrase
それな (sore na)
Exactly, true, or I completely agree.
Uses your device’s built-in voice. Pronunciation is approximate because available voices and tokyo pronunciation vary.
Meaning
それな is an informal Japanese response showing strong agreement with what someone has just said. It is similar to exactly, so true, or that is precisely it.
Pronunciation and grammar
Pronunciation: /so.ɾe na/
Part of speech: interjection
How it is used
It is common in relaxed conversation, messaging, and social media, especially among younger speakers.
Register: Very informal contemporary Japanese.
Examples in context
- この電車、いつも混んでる。—それな。This train is always crowded. — Exactly.
- 休みがもっと必要。—それな。We need more time off. — So true.
Important context
It can sound too casual or dismissive in formal conversation or when a longer, more considerate response is expected.
Source
Origin and background
The Japanese phrase それな is a casual agreement marker roughly meaning “exactly,” “that,” or “I know, right.” It is strongly associated with informal peer conversation and online exchange.
Cultural context
It validates another person’s point without repeating the full idea. Delivery can sound enthusiastic, dry, humorous, or merely acknowledging.
When to use it
Use it with friends or peers in relaxed settings where casual Japanese is appropriate.
When not to use it
Avoid it in formal workplace, customer-service, or senior-junior interactions that require more polite agreement.
Example conversation
A: This summer heat is exhausting.
B: Sore na. I don’t want to leave the air conditioning.
Read the exchange as a complete interaction. Relationship, intonation, timing, and the reply often communicate more than a literal dictionary substitution.
Common misunderstanding
A literal word-by-word translation misses the conversational function. It points back to the previous speaker’s idea and strongly aligns with it.
Regional and speaker variation
Sore na is not used with identical frequency or meaning by every speaker in Tokyo and Japanese conversation. Age, neighbourhood, community, profession, formality, and personal style affect whether it sounds ordinary, marked, playful, dated, or unfamiliar.
Recognition is therefore different from permission to perform a local identity. Visitors and learners usually sound more natural when they understand the term first and use neutral language until the relationship and setting support it.
How to interpret real examples
Compare several complete examples rather than copying one sentence. Check who is speaking, what happened immediately before it, how the listener responds, and whether the expression softens, intensifies, jokes, agrees, or criticises.
Spelling is also an imperfect guide to sound. Use the pronunciation support as orientation, then listen for rhythm, stress, reductions, and speaker variation in full phrases.
Similar words and related language
- wakaru
- hontō ni
- exactly
Compare this entry with the Tokyo and Japanese conversation guide for this usage type and the complete LocalMean guide directory.