Skill and judgement
Idioms, Stage 2chunk 5 of 21What people are like
How capable someone is: a poor judge, skilled hands, shrewd, savvy.
- miru me ga naibe a poor judge (of people or things)literally “have no eye for seeing”
- ude ga iiskilled at one's tradeliterally “the arm is good”
- nukeme ga naishrewd, never misses a chanceliterally “there are no gaps”
- youryou ga iisavvy, gets things done the smart wayliterally “the knack is good”
Mix-ups miru me ga nai (poor judge, criticism) and nukeme ga nai (shrewd, praise) share 'ga nai' but are opposite in tone. youryou ga ii can hint at cutting corners; ude ga ii never does.
miru me ga nai
polite miru me ga arimasen
“have no eye for seeing”
be a poor judge (of people or things)
Mostly about picking the wrong partner or hiring the wrong person (otoko o miru me ga nai), and as praise, miru me aru ne (you've got a good eye). Not me ga nai, which means you can't resist something.
Praise form: miru me ga aru (have a good eye).
watashi tte, otoko o miru me nai naa.
I'm such a bad judge of men.
私って、男を見る目ないなあ。
watashi, otoko o miru me ga nai n desu yo ne.
I'm just a poor judge of men.
私、男を見る目がないんですよね。
Written 見る目がない · みるめがないHeard 30× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside me ga nai (Stage 4), me ga kuramu (Stage 4)Main list miru (Stage 2), aru (Stage 1)
ude ga ii
polite ude ga ii desu
“the arm is good”
skilled at one's trade
Praise for a professional's skill, such as a doctor, cook, hairdresser or mechanic: ano isha, ude ii yo, or before a noun ude no ii shokunin. For everyday 'good at', jouzu is the plain word; ude ga ii judges someone's work as a pro.
Ude ga agaru = get better at it; plain single word: jouzu (good at).
ano biyoushi-san, ude ii yo.
That hairdresser's really good.
あの美容師さん、腕いいよ。
ano biyoushi-san wa ude ga ii desu yo.
That hairdresser is very skilled.
あの美容師さんは腕がいいですよ。
Written 腕がいい · うでがいいHeard 91× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside nukeme ga nai, youryou ga iiMain list ii (Stage 1), jouzu (Stage 3)
nukeme ga nai
polite nukeme ga nai desu
“there are no gaps”
shrewd, never misses a chance
In English: never miss a trick
Grudging admiration for someone who covers every angle or grabs every advantage, like a coworker who has already booked the good meeting room: nukeme nai na, with ga dropped. Sharper than youryou ga ii, and it can hint at calculating.
Adverb: nukeme naku (shrewdly, without missing a thing).
ano hito, honto nukeme nai yo ne.
She really never misses a trick, does she?
あの人、ほんと抜け目ないよね。
ano hito wa hontou ni nukeme ga nai desu yo ne.
She really never misses a chance, does she?
あの人は本当に抜け目がないですよね。
Written 抜け目がない · ぬけめがないHeard 50× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside ude ga ii, youryou ga iiMain list honto ni (Stage 1), aru (Stage 1), ano (Stage 1)
youryou ga ii
polite youryou ga ii desu
“the knack is good”
savvy, gets things done the smart way
About someone who gets results with little effort or knows how to stay on the boss's good side, said with admiration or a little envy. The opposite youryou ga warui (clumsy, inefficient) is often said about yourself; not the same as atama ga ii (smart).
Opposite: youryou ga warui (inefficient, clumsy at it).
kare, honto youryou ii yo ne.
He really knows how to work things.
彼、ほんと要領いいよね。
kare wa hontou ni youryou ga ii desu yo ne.
He's really good at getting things done efficiently.
彼は本当に要領がいいですよね。
Written 要領がいい · ようりょうがいいHeard 7× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitlesLearn alongside ude ga ii, nukeme ga naiMain list ii (Stage 1), warui (Stage 1)