Which one should you use?
While 悪い describes bad quality or morality, if you specifically want to express that something tastes bad, you should use まずい (informal) or まずいです (formal). If you want to express that something is 'not good' or 'not acceptable', you can use だめだ (informal) or だめです (formal). For expressing strong negative emotions or saying something is 'terrible', the informal term ひどい is used.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
To make the expression polite for use with strangers or superiors, add です to the word to form 悪いです. For expressing that something is not acceptable, the polite form is だめです and the informal form is だめだ. To express that food tastes bad, use the polite まずいです or the informal まずい.
How does it change in a sentence?
The past tense of 悪い is 悪かった (was bad), and the negative form is 悪くない (is not bad).
How do you pronounce it?
warui
Did you know?
- Japanese culture recognizes a concept called 物の哀れ (mono no aware), where the 'bad' or sad quality of something fading away, such as falling cherry blossoms, is viewed as a form of beauty.
- In certain social contexts, calling a person 悪い can actually be a compliment. In this sense, it functions like the English word 'wicked' to describe someone who is cool, rebellious or daring.
- The word まずい is often used as a slang warning to mean 'this is a problematic situation'. If a Japanese person says まずい after a mistake, they are not talking about taste but are signaling that they are in trouble.
Examples in context
- この料理はまずいですThis food tastes bad.
- この映画はひどいThis movie is terrible.
- 体調が悪い。Taichou ga warui.I feel unwell.
- この天気は悪いですね。Kono tenki wa warui desu ne.This weather is bad, isn't it?
- 気分が悪い時は、休んでください。Kibun ga warui toki wa, yasunde kudasai.When you feel sick, please rest.
Example conversation
陽葵 asks 陽太 how he is feeling because he looks pale.
- 陽葵 Himari陽太くん、顔色が悪いよ。Youta-kun, kaoiro ga warui yo.Youta, you look unwell.
- 陽太 Yotaちょっと、気分が悪いんだ。Chotto, kibun ga warui nda.I feel a bit sick.
- 陽葵 Himari大丈夫？無理しないでね。Daijoubu? Muri shinai de ne.Are you okay? Don't push yourself.
- 陽太 Yotaうん、少し休むよ。Un, sukoshi yasumu yo.Yeah, I'll rest a little.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 悪い, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
