Formal to Host
Cultural · Gift
これ、つまらないものですが、先日のお礼です。 — This is just a small token — a thank-you for the other day. (Cultural · Gift, Formal to Host, JLPT N4)
You
これ、つまらないものですが、先日のお礼です。
これ、つまらないものですが、せんじつのおれいです。
This is just a small token — a thank-you for the other day.
Romaji: Kore, tsumaranai mono desu ga, senjitsu no orei desu. / Reply Romaji: Ara, ki wo tsukawanakute yokatta noni. Arigatō gozaimasu.
Reply
あら、気を遣わなくてよかったのに。ありがとうございます。
あら、きをつかわなくてよかったのに。ありがとうございます。
Oh, you really didn't have to! Thank you so much.
Gesture & etiquette
Present with both hands and a deep bow, same as the original gift; choose gift wrapping as carefully as the gift itself; timing matters — too soon feels rushed, too late feels like an afterthought; aim for within 2 weeks.
お返し (okaeshi) — returning a gift — is a strong social expectation in Japan. For significant gifts (wedding cash, hospitalization gifts, omiyage), an okaeshi valued at roughly one-third to one-half of the original is expected within 2–4 weeks. Not returning is considered a quiet social slight, even if the original giver says 'you didn't have to.'