い-Adjective
Adjectives ending in い
Structure
Explanation
In Japanese, words that describe nouns are called adjectives. One type, known as an い-Adjective, is easily identified because its dictionary form always ends with the hiragana character い.
- 高い山。A high mountain.
- 面白い映画。An interesting movie.
While it's true that the dictionary form of an い-Adjective will always conclude with い, you must be careful, as some words that end in い are not い-Adjectives at all. Below are a few common examples that often trip up learners.
- あの店員はていねい。That clerk is polite.
- この町も有名。This town is also famous.
Take the word ゆうめい (famous) from the examples. When written in kanji, it is 有名. The final い sound is part of the reading for the second kanji, 名. This is different from true い-Adjectives, where the final い is always written as a separate hiragana character after the kanji. Since words like 有名 are often written only in hiragana, they can look like い-Adjectives. There isn't a simple trick to tell these words apart, so they must be memorized. Fortunately, the list of these exceptions is quite small, and you'll get used to them with practice.
Caution
A key difference from な-Adjectives is that い-Adjectives cannot be followed by the plain-form copula, だ. This is because だ attaches to nouns, and な-Adjectives behave like nouns. To make an い-Adjective more polite, you should use です instead.
- 冬の北海道は、寒いです。Hokkaido is cold in the winter. (Natural Japanese)
- パーティーは楽しいだ。The party is fun. (Unnatural Japanese)
Fun Fact
Interestingly, from a strictly grammatical perspective, adding です to an い-Adjective is technically improper. This is because です is the polite equivalent of だ and should logically follow the same rules, meaning it should only pair with nouns and な-Adjectives. Despite this, the usage is so widespread that virtually all native speakers use it and consider it completely natural.
Examples
忙しいです。
I am busy.
この試験は難しいです。
This exam is difficult.
涼しいです。
It is cool.
この部屋は広いです。
This room is spacious.
小さい犬。
A small dog.
あれは、良いです。
That (over there) is good.
優しい人。
A kind person.
いい天気。
Nice weather.
彼の話は長いです。
His story is long.
鈴木さんの息子さんは若い。
Ms. Suzuki's son is young.
私の弟の部屋は汚い。
My younger brother's room is dirty.
このケーキは、甘いです。
This cake is sweet.
その歌が悲しいです。
That song is sad.
今日は宿題が少ない。
I have little homework today.
この鞄が軽い。
This bag is light.
このコーヒーは苦いです。
This coffee is bitter.
それは、正しいです。
That is correct.
加藤さんの髪は短いです。
Ms. Kato's hair is short.
それは、素晴らしい。
That is wonderful.
この道が狭い。
This street is narrow.
あの子がおとなしい。
That child is quiet.
この授業はつまらないです。
This class is boring.
眠いです。
I'm sleepy.
痛い。
Ouch, that hurts.
それは、危ない。
That is dangerous.
隣の音楽がうるさいです。
The music from next door is loud.
私の祖母の料理が美味しい。
My grandmother's cooking is delicious.
それは、すごい。
That's amazing.
暗いです。
It's dark.
その質問は易しい。
That question is easy.
あれは珍しいです。
That is unusual.
今朝は、涼しい。
It's cool this morning.
今日のランチはとても美味しいです！
Today's lunch is really delicious!
その石は重いです。
That stone is heavy.
佐藤さんの声が低い。
Mr. Sato's voice is low.
私の兄の背は高い。
My older brother is tall.
それは、辛いです。
That is spicy.
悪い。
It is bad.
その映画は怖いです。
That movie is scary.