Fast in Japanese: hayai, explained with its major conjugations

How to say “fast” in Japanese

Japanese people would say “hayai”. It is the Japanese word for ‘fast’ or ‘quick’. In this blog post, I will explain this word and its major conjugations. And also, I will explain how to use them through example sentences. Let’s get started!

Contents

• Definition and meanings of “hayai”
  • Example #1: how to say “fast” in Japanese
• Nai form of “hayai”
  • Example #2: how to say “not fast” in Japanese
• Ta form of “hayai”
  • Example #3: how to use the past tense form of “hayai”
• Te form of “hayai”
  • Example #4: how to use “hayai” before another adjective
• Ba form of “hayai”
  • Example #5: how to use “hayakereba”
• Summary

Definition and meanings of “hayai”

Let me start with the definition and meanings of “hayai”.

• hayai – 速い (はやい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘fast’ or ‘quick’ in Japanese. This is suitable to express a degree of quickness.

Its definition and meanings are very simple and clear. Unfortunately, however, it has the homophone, “早い”, which means ‘early’ in Japanese. When we want to use “hayai”, therefore, we need to pick a proper kanji expression.

Then, let me explain how to use “hayai” through the example sentence below.

Example #1: how to say “fast” in Japanese

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• kono – この : a determiner used before a noun which refers to a thing close to the speaker. In the example, this is used before “kuruma” to say “this car” in Japanese.
• kuruma – 車 (くるま) : a noun meaning ‘car’ in Japanese.
• wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this is used after the noun phrase, “kono kuruma”, to make the subject in the sentence.
• totemo – とても : an adverb of degree, meaning ‘very’, ‘much’, ‘so’, ‘pretty’, or such. In the example, this is used before “hayai” to emphasize its meaning.

This is a typical usage of “hayai”. When we want to say “fast” in Japanese, this word would be a good choice. In this example, it works as a complement. Like other adjectives, however, it can also work as a modifier before a noun. So, we can say “totemo hayai kuruma” to mean ‘a very fast car’ in Japanese.

In the rest part of this blog post, I will explain major conjugations of “hayai”. The first one is “hayakunai”.

Nai form of “hayai”

Below are the definition and meanings of “hayakunai”.

• hayakunai – 速くない (はやくない) : the nai form of “hayai”, meaning ‘not fast’ or ‘not quick’ in Japanese.

Grammatically this nai form can be broken down into the following two parts:

• hayaku – 速く (はやく) : one conjugation of “hayai”. This can have the better connection with “nai”.
• nai – ない : an auxiliary verb used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to deny its meaning. Word orders in Japanese and English are different, but the role of this auxiliary verb is similar to that of “not”.

From these two components, we can understand that “hayakunai” is literally the nai form of “hayai” and means ‘not fast’ or ‘not quick’ in Japanese. Then, let me explain how to use it through the example sentence below.

Example #2: how to say “not fast” in Japanese

Below is the new word used in the example sentence.

• ano – あの : a determiner used before a noun which refers to a thing not close to the speaker. In the example, this is used before “kuruma” to say “that car” in Japanese.

This is a typical usage of “hayakunai”. When we want to say “not fast” in Japanese, this nai form would be a good choice.

Ta form of “hayai”

Below are the definition and meanings of “hayakatta”.

• hayakatta – 速かった (はやかった) : the ta form of “hayai”, working as its past tense form. So, this means ‘was fast’, ‘were fast’, ‘was quick’, ‘were quick’, or such in Japanese.

Grammatically this ta form can be broken down into the following two parts:

• hayakat – 速かっ (はやかっ) : one conjugation of “hayai”. This can have the better connection with “ta”.
• ta – た : an auxiliary verb used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its ta form.

From these two components, we can understand that “hayakatta” is literally the ta form of “hayai”. In Japanese, ta forms of verbs and adjectives can work as their past tense forms. So, we can say “hayakatta” to mean ‘was fast’ or such in Japanese. Then, let me explain how to use it through the example sentence below.

Example #3: how to use the past tense form of “hayai”

This is a typical usage of “hayakatta”. When we want to say “was fast” in Japanese, this would be a good choice.

Te form of “hayai”

Below are the definition and meanings of “hayakute”.

• hayakute – 速くて (はやくて) : the te form of “hayai”, meaning ‘fast’ or ‘quick’ in Japanese.

Grammatically this te form can be broken down into the following two parts:

• hayaku – 速く (はやく) : one conjugation of “hayai”. This can have the better connection with “te”.
• te – て : a conjunctive particle used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its te form.

A te form of an adjective can have a better connection with another adjective or a verb. So, “hayakute” is very useful when we want to use adjectives in a row. Let me explain how to use it through the example sentence below.

Example #4: how to use “hayai” before another adjective

Below is the new word used in the example sentence.

• abunai – 危ない (あぶない) : an i-adjective meaning ‘dangerous’ in Japanese.

This is a typical usage of “hayakute”. In the example, it has the smooth connection with “abunai”. When we want to use “hayai” before another adjective or a verb, its te form is useful.

Ba form of “hayai”

Below are the definition and meanings of “hayakereba”.

• hayakereba – 速ければ (はやければ) : the ba form of “hayai”, used to make a conditional clause with the meaning of ‘fast’ or ‘quick’ in Japanese.

Grammatically this ba form can be broken down into the following two parts:

• hayakere – 速けれ (はやけれ) : one conjugation of “hayai”. This can have the better connection with “ba”.
• ba – ば : a conjunctive particle used after a verb or adjective to make its ba form.

In Japanese, ba forms of verbs and adjectives can work as their conditional forms. So, “hayakereba” can work to make a conditional clause with the meaning of ‘fast’ or ‘quick’. Let me explain how to use it through the example sentence below.

Example #5: how to use “hayakereba”

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• anata – あなた : a pronoun meaning ‘you’ in Japanese.
• no – の : a case particle used after a noun or pronoun to make its possessive case. In the example, this is used after “anata” to make its possessive case, “anata no”, which means ‘your’ in Japanese.
• ga – が : a case particle used to make the subject word or the object word in a sentence. In the example, this is used after the noun phrase, “anata no kuruma”, to make the subject in the conditional clause.
• katsu – 勝つ (かつ) : a verb meaning ‘to win’ in Japanese.

This is a typical usage of “hayakereba”. In this example, it works as a part of the conditional clause which means ‘if your car is fast’. When we want to make a conditional clause with the meaning of ‘fast’ or ‘quick’ in Japanese, this ba form is useful.

Summary

In this blog post, I’ve explained the i-adjective, “hayai”, and its major conjugations with the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.

• hayai – 速い (はやい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘fast’ or ‘quick’ in Japanese. This is suitable to express a degree of quickness. This can work as both a modifier and a complement.
• hayakunai – 速くない (はやくない) : the nai form of “hayai”, meaning ‘not fast’ or ‘not quick’ in Japanese.
• hayakatta – 速かった (はやかった) : the ta form of “hayai”, working as its past tense form. So, this means ‘was fast’, ‘were fast’, ‘was quick’, ‘were quick’, or such in Japanese.
• hayakute – 速くて (はやくて) : the te form of “hayai”, meaning ‘fast’ or ‘quick’ in Japanese. This can have a smooth connection with another adjective or a verb. When we want to use “hayai” before another adjective, this is useful.
• hayakereba – 速ければ (はやければ) : the ba form of “hayai”, used to make a conditional clause with the meaning of ‘fast’ or ‘quick’ in Japanese.

Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.