Translation guide
In Japanese, the word for 'confectionery' depends on whether you mean the shop, the products, or the industry. The most common everyday term for sweets and candies is お菓子 (okashi). For a shop that sells them, use お菓子屋 (okashiya) or スイーツショップ (suiitsu shoppu). For the broader industry or Western-style confectionery, 洋菓子 (yougashi) and 製菓 (seika) are used.
The speaker wants to refer to sweet treats, snacks, or candies in everyday conversation.
The most common and polite way to say 'sweets' or 'snacks'. The prefix お adds politeness. Used for both Japanese and Western sweets.
お菓子を食べたい。
I want to eat some sweets.
このお菓子はとてもおいしい。
These sweets are very delicious.
Same meaning as お菓子 but without the polite prefix. Used in compound words or more formal contexts.
菓子パン
sweet bread / pastry bread
Loanword from English 'sweets'. Often implies fashionable, Western-style desserts like cakes and pastries. Common in marketing and among younger people.
スイーツを食べに行かない？
Want to go eat some sweets?
The speaker wants to refer to a place where sweets are sold.
A shop that sells Japanese or general sweets. The suffix 屋 means 'shop'.
駅前にお菓子屋ができた。
A confectionery shop opened in front of the station.
A shop specializing in Western-style desserts, often trendy.
新しいスイーツショップでケーキを買った。
I bought a cake at the new sweets shop.
A shop specializing in Western confectionery. More formal than スイーツショップ.
老舗の洋菓子店でマカロンを買う。
I buy macarons at a long-established Western confectionery shop.
The speaker wants to distinguish Western sweets from Japanese sweets.
Refers to Western-style sweets like cakes, cookies, and chocolates. Contrasts with 和菓子 (wagashi).
洋菓子と和菓子、どちらが好きですか？
Which do you prefer, Western sweets or Japanese sweets?
The speaker wants to talk about the business or production of sweets.
Refers to confectionery manufacturing or the industry. Used in compound words like 製菓会社 (confectionery company).
彼は製菓会社に勤めている。
He works for a confectionery company.
Formal term for the confectionery manufacturing industry.
菓子製造業は競争が激しい。
The confectionery manufacturing industry is highly competitive.
お菓子 is the general, everyday word for snacks and sweets, including traditional Japanese ones. スイーツ is a trendy loanword that specifically evokes stylish Western desserts. Use お菓子 in most situations; use スイーツ when emphasizing a fashionable, dessert-like quality.
お菓子をどうぞ。
Please have some snacks/sweets.
スイーツバイキングに行きたい。
I want to go to a dessert buffet.
When referring to a shop that sells sweets, お菓子屋 is the most natural choice. You can also use スイーツショップ for a modern, Western-style dessert shop. Avoid directly translating 'confectionery' as a shop name; it's not a common standalone word in Japanese.
あのお菓子屋のどら焼きは有名だ。
That confectionery shop's dorayaki is famous.