考えすぎ
kangaesugi
Overthinking in Japanese is 考えすぎ (kangaesugi).
考えすぎ refers to the act of thinking about something for too long or too much, which often results in unnecessary worry. In a relaxed or informal setting, you might also use the expression 余計（よけい）な心配（しんぱい）をする to describe the act of worrying unnecessarily.
How does it change in a sentence?
In a friendly, conversational way to tell someone 'You're overthinking it', you can add the particle to the end to form 考えすぎだよ (kangaesugi da yo).
How do you pronounce it?
kangaesugi
Did you know?
- In Japanese culture, overthinking is often discussed in the context of 気疲れ (kizukare), a specific type of exhaustion caused by the mental strain of reading the air and anticipating others' needs.
- If you want to describe the mental fatigue caused by overthinking, you might use the word 悶々 (monmon), which describes a state of being unsettled or agonized by repetitive, troubling thoughts.
- The suffix すぎ (sugi) in 考えすぎ comes from the verb すぎる (sugiru), which means 'to pass' or 'to exceed'. In Japanese, this suffix can be attached to almost any verb to instantly turn it into a word for 'doing too much' of that action.
Examples in context
- 考えすぎよ。You're overthinking things.This example shows how to use 考えすぎ to tell someone they are overthinking.Tatoeba #11016891 by small_snow, translation #11016855 by CK
- うれしいです。わたし、母国語以外で話そうとすると考えすぎちゃって、上手くいかないんです。Thank you. Whenever I try to speak in a language other than my own, I end up overthinking things, and it never goes well.This example uses 考えすぎ to describe the feeling of unintentionally overthinking while trying to speak a foreign language.Tatoeba #2973768 by Fukuko, translation #10765290 by end
- 何（なに）も起（お）こらないのに、余計（よけい）な心配（しんぱい）をしてしまうんだよね。I tend to worry unnecessarily even when nothing happens.
- 私（わたし）は考（かんが）えすぎるクセがあるんだ。I have a habit of overthinking.
- 考えすぎは良くないよ。kangaesugi wa yokunai yo.Overthinking is not good for you.
Example conversation
陽葵 is worried about a small mistake she made at work and 陽太 tries to comfort her.
- 陽葵 Himari仕事のミス、どうしよう。shigoto no misu, doushiyou.What should I do about my mistake at work?
- 陽太 Yota陽葵、それは考えすぎだよ。himari, sore wa kangaesugi da yo.Himari, you are overthinking it.
- 陽葵 Himariでも、すごく不安なの。demo, sugoku fuan na no.But, I'm really anxious.
- 陽太 Yota大丈夫、明日また頑張ろう。daijoubu, ashita mata ganbarou.It's okay, let's just do our best again tomorrow.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
