What does it mean word for word?
The term かっこいい is a combination of かっこ meaning "appearance" and ii meaning "good", so it literally translates to "good appearance".
Which one should you use?
Depending on the situation and your relationship with the listener, you may use different expressions. To express excitement and admiration informally, you can use すごい！ or すごいね to show surprise and awe. For a more colloquial and intense sense of being "mind-blowing" or "off the charts", you can use ぶっ飛んでる！ To express that something is wonderful or marvelous in a formal setting, use 素晴らしいですね.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
For formal settings, you should use すごいですね to mean "That's amazing!" or 素晴らしいですね to mean "wonderful". In informal settings, すごい！ and すごいね are common. For an emphatic, casual tone that expresses strong emotion, you can use なんてかっこいいんだ.
How does it change in a sentence?
If you want to connect this phrase to another adjective in a sentence, the i at the end of なんてかっこいい changes to kute to form なんてかっこよくて (meaning "how cool and…").
How do you pronounce it?
nante kakkoii
Did you know?
- In Japanese-speaking pop culture, a 'cool' character is often described as 渋い (shibui), which originally referred to a 'bitter' or 'astringent' taste.
- Japanese has a specific term ギャップ萌え (gap moe) for when someone who doesn't seem 'cool' suddenly does something かっこいい, making them even more attractive.
- The word かっこ (appearance) is also the term used for 'parentheses' in Japanese writing.
Examples in context
- あの人の運転、なんてかっこいいんだろう。Ano hito no unten, nante kakkoii ndarou.How cool that person's driving is.
- なんてかっこいい映画なんだろう！Nante kakkoii eiga nandarou!What a cool movie this is!
Example conversation
Hiroto and Himari are watching a professional skater perform.
- 大翔 Hirotoなんてかっこいい技なんだ！Nante kakkoii waza nanda!What a cool trick!
- 陽葵 Himari本当にかっこいいよね。Hontou ni kakkoii yo ne.It really is cool, isn't it?
- 大翔 Hirotoあんな風になりたいな。Anna fuu ni naritai na.I want to be like that.
- 陽葵 Himari大翔君なら練習すればできるよ。Hiroto-kun nara renshuu sureba dekiru yo.If you practice, you can do it, Hiroto.
