悪
aku[a̠kɯ̟]
The Japanese term aku means evil or wicked.
aku is used to describe something that is inherently evil, wicked or morally bad.
How do you pronounce it?
aku
Did you know?
- While aku represents moral evil, the Japanese language distinguishes this from warui, which can describe a 'bad' cold or 'bad' weather without implying wickedness.
- The character 悪 is used to form the word akumu meaning 'nightmare', suggesting that a nightmare is literally an 'evil dream'.
- The word akuyaku uses aku to describe a 'villain' or 'bad actor', creating a link between moral evil and theatrical roles.
Examples in context
- 彼は本当に悪い人だ。He is a really bad person.
- 彼は悪の組織の一員だ。Kare wa aku no soshiki no ichiin da.He is a member of an evil organization.
- 物語には悪の要素が必要だ。Monogatari ni wa aku no youso ga hitsuyou da.A story needs elements of evil.
- 悪が勝利するのは嫌いだ。Aku ga shouri suru no wa kirai da.I hate it when evil wins.
Example conversation
Ren and Himari are discussing a movie they just watched.
- 蓮 Renこの映画の敵は本当に純粋な悪だね。Kono eiga no teki wa hontō ni junsui na aku da ne.The villain in this movie is truly pure evil, isn't he?
- 陽葵 Himariそうね。全く同情できない性格だわ。Sō ne. Mattaku dōjō dekinai seikaku da wa.You're right. He has a personality you can't sympathize with at all.
- 蓮 Ren最後は正義が勝つと思ったよ。Saigo wa seigi ga katsu to omotta yo.I thought justice would win in the end.
- 陽葵 Himariそれが当たり前よ、蓮。Sore ga atarimae yo, Ren.That's only natural, Ren.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 悪, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
