All About the Japanese Word Sate

The Japanese word, sate, or in Japanese characters, "さて" means "now," "so," "well" and "well then" depending on the context. Sate can be used as a conjunction or interjection.

Example Sentence

An example of sate in a sentence would be Sate, doushiyou. In Japanese letters, or kanji, the phrase would be written as:

• さてどうしよう。

This sentence translates as:

• What shall I do now?

Other Uses

The website Self Taught Japanese says there are also some alternative uses for sate. "The phrase “さて” (sate) and equivalent “さてっと” (satetto) have a similar meaning to “さあ” (here we go). While they can be used to get the attention of another person さて、やってみよっか (Well, let's try it), I more often hear this pair used when talking to oneself."