Adjectives

Vocabulary

高(たか)いたか・いi-adjhigh, expensive

暑(あつ)いあつ・いi-adjhot (weather)

寒(さむ)いさむ・いi-adjcold

大(おお)きいおお・きいi-adjbig

小(ちい)さいちい・さいi-adjsmall

静(しず)かしず・かna-adjquiet

きれいna-adjpretty, clean

暇(ひま)ひまna-adjfree (time)

元気(げんき)げん・きna-adjhealthy, energetic

部屋(へや)へ・やroom

Japanese adjectives conjugate just like verbs. There are two main types: i-adjectives and na-adjectives.

I-Adjectives

These always end in the hiragana い. They can be directly placed before a noun.

Examples

高(たか)い

—High/Expensive

暑(あつ)い

—Hot

Conjugation

Replace the final い with くない.

高(たか)い→高(たか)くない

—Not high/expensive

寒(さむ)い→寒(さむ)くない

—Not cold

大(おお)きい→大(おお)きくない

—Not big

Na-Adjectives

These behave more like nouns. To modify a noun, you must add な the adjective and the noun.

Examples

静(しず)か

—Quiet

きれい

—Pretty/Clean (Exception: ends in i but is a na-adjective)

Usage

静(しず)かな部屋(へや)

—A quiet room

きれいな人(ひと)

—A beautiful person

元気(げんき)な子供(こども)

—An energetic child

Conjugation

Since they act like nouns, you use the copula’s negative form.

静(しず)かじゃない

—Not quiet

きれいじゃない

—Not pretty

元気(げんき)じゃない

—Not healthy

Summary Table

Type	Affirmative	Negative	Meaning
i-adj	寒(さむ)い	寒(さむ)くない	Cold
i-adj	高(たか)い	高(たか)くない	High/Expensive
na-adj	暇(ひま)だ	暇(ひま)じゃない	Free (time)
na-adj	静(しず)かだ	静(しず)かじゃない	Quiet