Ways to say it
| Japanese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 迷惑 | meiwaku | [me̞ːβ̞a̠kɯ̟] (narrow) | |
| 迷惑な物 | meiwaku na mono | ||
| 迷惑な人 | meiwaku na hito | person |
迷惑 refers to a minor annoyance, inconvenience or the state of being troubled by someone or something. To express the active behavior of being a nuisance or inconveniencing someone, the idiomatic verb phrase 迷惑をかける is used. You can also state directly that something is a nuisance by saying 迷惑です. For informal situations, you might use Mendō (めんどう) to describe something bothersome or annoying or Yakkai (やっかい) to describe a person or thing that is a nuisance due to being pesky or troublesome.
What does it mean word for word?
The word 迷惑 literally means trouble, inconvenience or nuisance.
Which one should you use?
While 迷惑 is the standard term, 迷惑な物 refers to a nuisance object and 迷惑な人 refers to a nuisance person.
How does it change in a sentence?
When using 迷惑 as an adjective to describe a noun, you must add な after it, creating the form 迷惑な.
How do you pronounce it?
meiwaku
When do people say it?
In Japanese society, the concept of meiwaku is central to social etiquette. Avoiding causing meiwaku to others is a highly valued social norm.
Did you know?
- The word 迷惑 can describe a situation where someone is 'too helpful', such as a neighbor who does unwanted chores, because the resulting social obligation creates a nuisance.
- In modern Japanese sociology, the term 迷惑社会 (meiwaku-shakai) is used to describe a 'nuisance society'. This describes a paradox where people are so afraid of bothering others that they may actually avoid helping someone in distress to prevent being a nuisance themselves.
- While 迷惑 is a noun, the related word めんどう (mendō) can be used as a verb めんどうをみる meaning 'to take care of' or 'to look after' someone.
Examples in context
- 迷惑にならないようにしなさい。Never make a nuisance of yourself.This sentence shows how to use 迷惑 to express the idea of not being a nuisance.Tatoeba #80226 by small_snow, translation #323491 by CM
- 周りに迷惑かけてる自覚はある？Do you feel self-conscious about being a nuisance to those around you?This sentence uses 迷惑 to ask about the awareness of being a nuisance to others.Tatoeba #4865731 by tommy_san, translation #4923542 by gustonrankin
- 迷惑をかけるTo be a nuisance, to incovenienceThis sentence shows the idiomatic way to use 迷惑 to mean inconveniencing someone.
- Ano hito wa yakkai da yo (あの人はやっかいだよ)That person is such a nuisance.
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Yota is apologizing for calling Yui too late at night.
- 陽太 Yota夜遅くに電話して、迷惑だったかな？Yoru osoku ni denwa shite, meiwaku datta kana?I called you late at night, was it a nuisance?
- 結衣 Yui全然大丈夫だよ。気にしてないよ。Zenzen daijoubu dayo. Ki ni shitenai yo.It's totally fine. I'm not bothered.
- 陽太 Yotaよかった。迷惑をかけたくなかったから。Yokatta. Meiwaku o kaketakunakatta kara.That's a relief. I didn't want to be a nuisance.
- 結衣 Yui本当に気にしなくていいよ、陽太くん。Hontou ni ki ni shinakute ii yo, Yota-kun.You really don't have to worry about it, Yota.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “nuisance” translations and entries 迷惑, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR, Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0.
