申し申し

Etymology

/mauɕi mauɕi/ → /moːɕi moːɕi/

Reduplication of 申し (mōshi), the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of verb 申す (mōsu, “to speak”, humble form).^[1][2][3] Mōshi mōshi literally means "speaking speaking", and was used in the first telephone experiment in Japan, quite similar to the English “checking, checking” or “testing, testing” used when testing audio equipment. In modern parlance, it is used more like English “hello”, only just on the telephone, or figuratively when trying to get through to someone.

Pronunciation

• Kun’yomi
  • IPA^(key): [mo̞ːɕi mo̞ːɕi]

Interjection

申し申し (hiragana もうしもうし, rōmaji mōshi mōshi, historical hiragana まうしまうし)

1. A common Japanese telephone greeting: hello; a common greeting used when answering the telephone.
2. Used to confirm that the person being addressed is listening, or to confirm if anyone is listening.

References