shoushou matte kudasai.

Please wait a moment.

Breakdown of shoushou matte kudasai.

• 待まつ: to wait
• ください: please
• 少々しょうしょう: a moment

Questions & Answers about shoushou matte kudasai.

What does 少々 mean here, and is it different from ちょっと?

少々 is read しょうしょう and means a little or for a moment here.

In this sentence, it gives the nuance of please wait a moment.

Compared with ちょっと, 少々 sounds:

• more formal
• more polite
• more common in customer service or business situations

So:

• ちょっと待ってください = polite and common
• 少々待ってください = more formal/polite

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Why is 待つ changed to 待って?

待って is the て-form of 待つ.

The verb 待つ is a u-verb, and verbs ending in つ change like this:

• 待つ → 待って

This happens because the sentence uses the pattern:

て-form + ください

which means please do ...

So:

• 待ってください = please wait

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What does ください do in this sentence?