勤勉
kinben[kʲĩmbẽ̞ɴ]
The English word "diligent" is translated into Japanese as 勤勉 (kinben).
勤勉 is used to describe someone who is hard-working and focused. It specifically highlights a person's industry and work ethic. You can use it in phrases like 勤勉に働く to mean "work diligently."
Meaning: hard-working and focused (adj)
How does it change in a sentence?
勤勉 is a na-adjective. To use it to modify a noun, you must add な to the end, as in 勤勉な. When used as a predicate in plain or informal speech, it takes だ (e.g., 勤勉だ). In polite speech, you should follow it with です (e.g., 勤勉です).
How do you pronounce it?
kinben
Did you know?
- While 勤勉 is a standard term, the slang word 社畜 describes a 'corporate drone'. This is a cynical inversion of diligence where someone is so 'hard-working' they have lost their humanity to their company.
- Japanese has a specific term 勉強 which means 'study'. It uses the second character of 勤勉, 勉, but combined with 'strong' to literally mean 'exerting strong effort'.
- Using 勤勉 to describe yourself can sound overly formal or even boastful. Instead, Japanese speakers often use humble phrasing or let others describe them as 勤勉 to avoid appearing arrogant.
Examples in context
- トムのような勤勉な人は、絶対成功するって。A man as diligent as Tom is, is sure to succeed.This sentence is useful for showing how to use 勤勉 as an adjective modifying a noun.Tatoeba #10123499 by small_snow, translation #10118239 by CM
- 彼は勤勉です。He is diligent.This sentence is useful for showing how to use 勤勉 as a predicate in a polite sentence.Tatoeba #1325235 by Scott, translation #7730731 by User82312
- 彼は勤勉な学生です。He is a diligent student.
- 彼女は熱心な社員です。She is a diligent employee.
- 彼女はとても勤勉な学生です。Kanojo wa totemo kinben na gakusei desu.She is a very diligent student.
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two colleagues are talking about a reliable coworker in the office.
- 美咲 Misaki佐藤さんはいつも丁寧ですね。Satou-san wa itsumo teinei desu ne.Mr. Sato is always very polite/thorough, isn't he?
- 陽太 Yotaはい、とても勤勉な人です。Hai, totemo kinben na hito desu.Yes, he is a very diligent person.
- 美咲 Misaki仕事が早いから助かります。Shigoto ga hayai kara tasukarimasu.It helps because he works fast.
- 陽太 Yota本当に頼りになりますね。Hontou ni tayori ni narimasu ne.He is truly reliable, isn't he?
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 勤勉, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
