1. Honorific prefix お ・ ご

2. The beautifying prefixes お 〜 and ご〜 are commonly used for certain words, such as お湯 (o-yu) and お 茶 (o-cha) – hot water and tea 。

3. The bikago (beautifying) prefixes o- and go- (both written 御, or in hiragana) are honorific prefixes which are applied to nouns and in some contexts to verbs.bikago In general, go- precedes Sino- Japanese words (that is, words borrowed from Chinese), while o- precedes native Japanese words.

4. These prefixes are used for two purposes: 1. to speak respectfully about a social superior's family, or actions (sonkeigo) 2. or to speak in a generally refined or polite way (keigo).

5. おなまえ おげんき おちゃ おゆ おすし お金

6. ごりょうしん ごはん ごちゅうもん ごしょうかい ごちゅうい ごちゅうもん は。 おのみものは。

7. These prefixes are essentially untranslatable, but their use indicates a polite respect for the item named or the person to or about whom one is speaking. A shorter translation is "dear" – for example, o-ko-san, お子さん, translates idiomatically as "your dear child" – and a similar sentiment is expressed in such English expressions as "Would you like a spot of tea?" or "Would you like a little tea?" (as opposed to the plain "Would you like some tea?").

8. As with honorific word forms and titles, honorific prefixes are used when referring to or speaking with a social superior, but not usually when referring to oneself or one's own actions or possessions, or those of one's in-group. For example, when referring to one's own order at a restaurant, one would use chūmon, but when referring to a customer's order, the restaurant staff would use go-chūmon. Similarly, kazoku means "my family," while go-kazoku means "your family" (or, broadly speaking, someone else's family).

9. There are some words which frequently or always take these prefixes, regardless of who is speaking and to whom; these are often ordinary items which may have particular cultural significance, such as tea (o- cha) and rice (go-han).

10. In tea ceremony, common ingredients and equipment always take the honorific o- or go-, including water (o-mizu), hot water (o- yu), and tea bowls (o-chawan). However, these terms are often heard in daily life as well.