Personality and mood
Collocations, Stage 2chunk 22 of 24Describing people
What someone is like and how they seem: nice, mean, pleasant to deal with, down today.
- seikaku ga iibe a nice person
- seikaku ga waruibe mean, nasty
- kanji ga iibe pleasant, nice (person or place)
- genki ga naibe down, low on energy
Mix-ups seikaku is who someone is underneath, kanji is the impression their manner gives, and genki ga nai is how they seem right now. seikaku ga warui means mean or nasty, far stronger than 'not nice', and genki ga nai is low and flat, not kibun ga warui (feel sick).
seikaku ga ii
polite seikaku ga ii desube a nice person
性格がいい せいかくがいい 性格がいいです
adjectiveii いいii: goodtypical 10% of seikaku
trap Not ii seikaku: in that order, ii seikaku shiteru ne is usually sarcastic ('you've got some nerve'). The compliment keeps seikaku first: seikaku ii, seikaku no ii hito. Seikaku warui is far stronger than 'not nice': it means mean or nasty.
The plain way to say someone is a good, kind person: ano hito, seikaku ii yo ne, with ga dropped. Before a noun it's seikaku no ii hito, and it often pairs with looks: kao mo ii shi seikaku mo ii. Seikaku warui (mean, nasty) is harsh and common in gossip.
ano hito, honto ni seikaku ii yo ne.
She's such a nice person, isn't she?
あの人、ほんとに性格いいよね。
ano hito wa hontou ni seikaku ga ii desu yo ne.
She really is a lovely person, isn't she?
あの人は本当に性格がいいですよね。
Ii hito also means 'a nice person', but ii hito na n da kedo... is the classic brush-off (nice, but not for me).
Same adjective: hitogara (hitogara ga ii: good-natured), kao (kao ga ii: good-looking), tsukiai (tsukiai ga ii: sociable, always up for things)Learn alongside: sutairu ga ii, atama ga ii, sensu ga ii, seikaku ga warui, kanji ga ii, ii fun'iki (Stage 3), hyouban ga ii (Stage 3), seiseki ga ii (Stage 3), me ga warui (Stage 4)Main list: ii (Stage 1), warui (Stage 1), yasashii (Stage 3), hito (Stage 3)
seikaku ga warui
polite seikaku ga warui desube mean, nasty
性格が悪い せいかくがわるい 性格が悪いです
adjectivewarui 悪いwarui: badtypical 10% of seikaku
trap Not warui hito, which judges someone as a bad person in the moral sense (warui hito ja nai kedo... = he's not a bad guy, but...): mean or nasty by nature is seikaku ga warui. ijiwaru (mean, spiteful) works for a person or an act: ijiwaru shinaide = don't be mean.
Gossip about someone mean or spiteful, almost always with ga dropped: ano hito, seikaku warui yo ne. It judges who a person is, so it's said about people far more than to them; before a noun it's seikaku no warui hito.
ano senpai, honto seikaku warui n da yo.
That senior is seriously mean.
あの先輩、ほんと性格悪いんだよ。
ano senpai wa hontou ni seikaku ga warui n desu yo.
That senior is really mean.
あの先輩は本当に性格が悪いんですよ。
Among friends, the clipped seikaku waru! is a playful 'that's so mean!'.
Same adjective: kuchi (kuchi ga warui: sharp-tongued), taido (taido ga warui: rude), gyougi (gyougi ga warui: bad manners)Learn alongside: sutairu ga ii, atama ga ii, sensu ga ii, seikaku ga ii, kanji ga ii, ii fun'iki (Stage 3), hyouban ga ii (Stage 3), seiseki ga ii (Stage 3), me ga warui (Stage 4)Main list: warui (Stage 1)
kanji ga ii
polite kanji ga ii desube pleasant, nice (person or place)
感じがいい かんじがいい 感じがいいです
adjectiveii いいii: goodtypical 44% of kanji
trap English 'nice' pulls toward yasashii, but yasashii is a kind, gentle nature. The pleasant impression a person's manner or a place gives is kanji ga ii, and yasashii is wrong for a place. Rude or off-putting is kanji warui.
The verdict on someone's manner, a shop's staff or a place: ano ten'in-san, kanji ii ne, with ga dropped. Before a noun, ga often becomes no: kanji no ii hito (a pleasant person). The opposite, kanji warui (rude, off-putting), is at least as common.
ano mise no ten'in-san, kanji ii ne.
The staff at that shop are so pleasant.
あの店の店員さん、感じいいね。
ano mise no ten'in-san wa kanji ga ii desu ne.
The staff at that shop are very pleasant.
あの店の店員さんは感じがいいですね。
In the reverse order, ii kanji (いい感じ) means 'going well, looking good': ii kanji da ne! For the mood of a café or a room, the usual set is ii fun'iki. Kanji (感じ, feeling) sounds the same as kanji (Chinese characters).
Same adjective: aiso (aiso ga ii: friendly, affable), inshou (inshou ga ii: make a good impression), taido (taido ga warui: have a bad attitude)Learn alongside: sutairu ga ii, atama ga ii, sensu ga ii, seikaku ga ii, seikaku ga warui, ii fun'iki (Stage 3), hyouban ga ii (Stage 3), seiseki ga ii (Stage 3), me ga warui (Stage 4)Main list: ii (Stage 1), warui (Stage 1), yasashii (Stage 3), tte kanji (Stage 1)
genki ga nai
polite genki ga arimasenbe down, low on energy
元気がない げんきがない 元気がありません
adjectivenai ないnai: there isn't, have none (negative of aru)typical 9% of genki
trap Not kanashii (sad, too strong), and not genki ja nai, which leans toward 'unwell': for 'you seem down', say genki nai ne. If something has upset them, ochikonderu? (are you feeling down?) is also natural.
Said when you notice someone seems low: genki nai ne, dou shita no? Casual speech drops ga. In polite speech genki nai desu ne is just as common as genki ga arimasen. The opposite is genki ga aru (full of energy).
genki nai ne. dou shita no?
You seem down. What's up?
元気ないね。どうしたの？
genki nai desu ne. dou shita n desu ka?
You seem down. Is something wrong?
元気ないですね。どうしたんですか？
Here genki is a noun (energy), not the adjective genki da. Genki dashite (cheer up) is the usual response. Keep apart: genki nai = low, flat; kigen warui = grumpy; kibun warui = feel sick; guai warui = unwell.
Same adjective: yaruki (motivation), shokuyoku (appetite), jishin (confidence)Learn alongside: genki o dasu (Stage 3), yaruki ga nai (Stage 4), yaruki ga deru (Stage 4), genki ga deru (Stage 4), tenshon ga agaru (Stage 4)Main list: genki (Stage 3), aru (Stage 1)