超かわいい
chō kawaii
The English phrase "you're so cute" is translated into Japanese as 超かわいい (chō kawaii).
This expression is used to tell someone that they are very adorable or charming. In Japanese, the subject is often omitted, so 超かわいい can mean "it is so cute", "you are so cute" or "she is so cute" depending on context.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
超かわいい is informal and is best used with friends, peers or people younger than you. For a more formal way to say "You're very cute", you can use とても可愛らしいですね。 Other informal variations include すごく可愛いね。 for "You're so cute" and 本当に可愛いんだよ。 for "You're really cute.".
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective form changes to 超かわいくて when you want to connect the quality of being cute to another adjective or verb in a sentence.
How do you pronounce it?
chō kawaii
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often try to add です to the end of 超かわいい to be polite, but adding です to a phrase starting with the slangy 超 creates a stylistic clash between very casual and polite language.
Did you know?
- The word かわいい was originally written with characters meaning 'feasible to be loved', but it evolved from an older word kawai which meant 'pitiful' or 'poor thing'.
- In some contexts, かわいい can be used as a soft way to reject a romantic advance by labeling the person as 'cute' like a younger sibling, rather than 'attractive' as a partner.
- The adjective かわいい can be written in many ways, including using only hiragana to make the word itself look visually 'softer' and 'cuter' on the page.
Examples in context
- その猫、超かわいい！Sono neko, chō kawaii!That cat is so cute!
- このキャラクター、超かわいいね。Kono kyarakutā, chō kawaii ne.This character is so cute, isn't it?
Example conversation
A young woman is looking at a photo of a puppy on her friend's phone.
- 陽葵 Himariこのワンちゃん、超かわいい！Kono wanchan, chō kawaii!This puppy is so cute!
- 陽太 Yota本当だね、癒やされるよ。Hontō da ne, iyasareru yo.It really is, it's so soothing.
- 陽葵 Himari陽太君も、たまに超かわいいよ。Yōta-kun mo, tamani chō kawaii yo.You're also so cute sometimes, Yota.
- 陽太 Yota急に何を言ってるの？Kyū ni nani o itteru no?What are you saying all of a sudden?
