Nにする (N ni Suru) Meaning & Usage: How to Say “I’ll Have / I’ll Go With”

Introduction

Have you ever wanted to say “I’ll have the curry” or “Let’s make it Sunday” in Japanese?

For example:

• How do you order at a restaurant when the server asks what you’d like?
• How do you settle on a time and place to meet a friend?
• How do you tell a friend which one to go with when they’re choosing between products?

For all of these, Japanese uses Nにする (N ni suru)—a short, everyday pattern for picking one option out of several.

1. Meaning: What does Nにする mean?

Nにする means “to decide on N” or “to choose N.”

It is used when you choose one option from among possible alternatives.

Common English equivalents:

• I’ll have ~ (when ordering)
• I’ll go with ~
• I’ll choose ~
• Let’s make it ~ (with ～にしましょう)

Example: At a Japanese restaurant

私わたしは天てんぷら定食ていしょくにします。
I’ll have the tempura set.

Why に and not を?

In the previous example, saying “天ぷら定食をします” is incorrect.

With する, に marks what you choose as the result of your decision.

You can compare this with 先生せんせいになる (to become a teacher / You never say 先生をなる), where に marks the result of a change.

In Nにする, you choose what the result will be.

Where you’ll hear it

This pattern comes up constantly in daily life:

• ordering food and drinks
• fixing a date, time, or meeting place
• choosing what to wear or buy
• picking a restaurant, a route, or a plan

2. Formation

Noun + にする

• コーヒー → コーヒーにする
• 土曜日どようび → 土曜日どようびにする
• 赤あかいかばん → 赤あかいかばんにする

Everyday forms of する

する conjugates normally, and a few forms do most of the work:

• Nにします — I’ll have / I’ll go with (a choice you or your group makes)
• Nにしましょう — Let’s make it N. (a suggestion to decide on N together)
• Nにしませんか — Shall we make it N? / How about N? (a polite suggestion)
• Nにしたら？／Nにしたらどうですか — why don’t you go with N? (advice)
• Nにしようかな — maybe I’ll go with N (thinking aloud)

If you want to review the grammar, read these articles:

• ～ましょう・～ましょうか
• ～たらどうですか
• ～かな

Question words

To ask someone to choose, put a question word before に.

These are among the most useful phrases in the pattern.

• 何なににしますか。= What will you have?
• どれにしますか。= Which one will you take?
• いつにしましょうか。= When shall we make it?
• どこにしましょうか。= Where shall we make it?

In a restaurant you will often hear the honorific version: 何なにになさいますか。

のにする: “the one that…”

When the noun is clear from context, の can replace it.

It can follow an adjective or a phrase that describes the noun.

• 軽かるいのにします。= I’ll take the light one.
• 赤あかいのにします。= I’ll take the red one.

If you want to review this grammar, read How to Say “The Red One” in Japanese | Using Adjective + no（〜の） to Replace Nouns.

3. Useful Examples

① Ordering at a restaurant

Situation: Koki and John are having lunch together, and the server comes to take their order.

Clerk

ご注文ちゅうもんは何なにになさいますか。
What would you like to order?

John

親子丼おやこどんをお願ねがいします。コウキさんは？
The oyakodon, please. How about you, Koki?

Koki

カツ丼どんにします。
I’ll have the katsudon.

あまりおなかがすいていないので、昼食ちゅうしょくはサラダだけにします。
I’m not very hungry, so I’ll just have a salad for lunch.

② Making plans together

Situation: Emi and Ema are arranging to go out.

Emi

今度こんど、水族館すいぞくかんに行いかない？
How about going to the aquarium sometime?

Ema

いいね！いつにする？
Sounds good! When should we go?

Emi

再来週さらいしゅうの土曜日どようびにしようか。
How about the Saturday after next?

Ema

オッケー！
OK!

雨あめが降ふりそうだから、集合しゅうごう場所ばしょは駅えきの中なかにしましょう。
It looks like rain, so let’s make the meeting point inside the station.

会議かいぎは来週らいしゅうの火曜日かようびにしていただけますか。
Could we make the meeting next Tuesday?

③ Choosing what to wear or buy

Situation: Emi is standing in front of her closet before a party.

Emi

今日きょう着きていく服ふく、どれにしようかな。
Which one should I go with for today, I wonder.

Saori

緑みどりのスカートにしたら？よく似合にあってると思おもうよ。
Why not go with the green skirt? I think it suits you well.

Situation: Ken is talking to a sales clerk as he considers buying a new smartphone.

Clerk

スマホで何なにをすることが多おおいですか。
What do you use your smartphone for most often?

Ken

うーん、ゲームをしたり、YouTubeで動画どうがを見みたりすることが多おおいかな。
Hmm, I guess I mostly play games and watch videos on YouTube.

Clerk

それなら、画面がめんが大おおきいのにするのはどうでしょうか。
In that case, how about getting one with a larger screen?

母ははの日ひに何なにをプレゼントするか迷まよっていましたが、結局けっきょく花はなにしました。
I was unsure what to get my mom for Mother’s Day, but in the end, I decided on flowers.

4. Related grammar (comparison)

～ことにする

～ことにする means “to decide to do”.

It is the same idea applied to an action rather than a thing, and こと is what lets a verb fill the slot.

• ランチはパスタにします。= I’ll have pasta for lunch. (a thing)
• 今日きょうはパスタを食たべることにします。= I’ve decided to have pasta today. (an action)

～ことにしている

～ことにしている means “to make it a habit to”—a standing personal rule, rather than a choice you are making right now.

• 昼ひるは軽かるいものにします。= I’ll have something light for lunch. (today)
• 昼ひるは軽かるいものを食たべることにしています。= I make a point of eating light at lunch. (always)

Nになる

Nになる describes something that becomes or is settled as N.

Unlike Nにする, it does not directly present the speaker as the person making the choice.

• クリスマスライブの会場かいじょうは東京とうきょうドームにしました。= We decided to hold the Christmas concert at the Tokyo Dome. (we chose)
• クリスマスライブの会場かいじょうは東京とうきょうドームになりました。= The venue for the Christmas concert has been set as the Tokyo Dome. (it was decided)

Nがいい

Nがいい expresses what you prefer or want, while Nにする expresses the choice you make.

The two often appear in sequence.

• 私わたしはコーヒーがいいです。= I’d like coffee. (what I want)
• じゃあ、コーヒーにします。= All right, I’ll go with coffee. (what I’m choosing)

5. Common Mistake: にする vs. をする

Because English says “choose X,” learners reach for を.

That produces a different sentence entirely.

Remember this golden rule:

• Nにする: you choose N from among options.
• Nをする: you do N—play a sport, hold an event, perform an activity.
  • テニスをする (to play tennis)
  • 仕事しごとをする (to work)

Example: I’ll have the ramen.

• ✅ Correct: ラーメンにします。
• ❌ Incorrect: ラーメンをします。(This would mean something like “I’ll do ramen.”)

Example: Let’s play tennis tomorrow.

• ✅ Correct: 明日あしたテニスをしましょう。(doing the activity)
• ✅ Also correct, different meaning: 明日あしたはテニスにしましょう。= Let’s make it tennis tomorrow. (choosing tennis over other options)

A second trap is using this pattern with a verb.

Nにする takes a noun only, so a verb needs こと in between.

• ❌ Incorrect: 電車でんしゃで行いくにします。
• ✅ Correct: 電車でんしゃで行いくことにします。／ 電車でんしゃにします。

電車で行くことにします focuses on the decision to travel by train, while 電車にします simply selects the train as the means of transportation.

6. Practice

Translate the following into Japanese using Nにする.

7. FAQ

Conclusion

In this article, you learned how to use Nにする to decide on one option—a dish, a time, a place, or a product.

With this pattern, you can now:

• order confidently with ～にします,
• make plans with others using にしましょう and にしませんか,
• and keep にする apart from をする, になる, and ことにする.