可愛くない
kawaikunai
The English phrase "not cute" is translated into Japanese as 可愛くない (kawaikunai).
可愛くない is used to describe someone or something that lacks an attractive or endearing quality. While it can refer to physical appearance, it is also frequently used to describe someone's behavior or personality as being unkind or unappealing.
How does it change in a sentence?
To make the phrase polite and suitable for most social situations, you can add です to the end to form 可愛くないです. If you want to express that something was not cute in the past, change the ending to 可愛くなかった.
How do you pronounce it?
kawaikunai
Did you know?
- The root word kawaii is derived from the word for 'pitiful' or 'poor thing', suggesting that the original feeling of 'cuteness' was a desire to protect something small and fragile.
- While 可愛くない is a direct negation, Japanese speakers often avoid this phrasing and instead use 微妙 (mimyou), meaning 'subtle' or 'it is complicated', to politely imply something is not cute.
- There is a distinct concept called kimo-kawaii, which describes something that is simultaneously creepy and cute, meaning it is not 'not cute' even if it is unsettling.
Examples in context
- 可愛くないよ！I am not cute!This sentence is useful for expressing the phrase 可愛くない.Tatoeba #12399799 by DJ_Saidez, translation #8785257 by shekitten
- 彼の新しい髪型はかわいくない。His new hairstyle is not cute.
- 彼女のキャラクターは可愛らしくないですね。Her character is not cute, is it?
- このデザインは少し可愛くないです。Kono dezain wa sukoshi kawaikunai desu.This design is not very cute.
- 全然可愛くないね。Zenzen kawaikunai ne.It's not cute at all.
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Youta and Yui are looking at a new stuffed animal in a store.
- 陽太 Yotaこのクマ、どう思う？Kono kuma, dou omou?What do you think of this bear?
- 結衣 Yuiうーん、正直言って可愛くないよ。Uun, shoujiki itte kawaikunai yo.Hmm, to be honest, it is not cute.
- 陽太 Yotaそうかな？僕は好きだけど。Sou kana? Boku wa suki dakedo.You think so? I like it, though.
- 結衣 Yui陽太の好みはよく分からないな。Youta no konomi wa yoku wakaranai na.I don't really understand your taste, Youta.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
