Kawaii is the Japanese word for ‘cute’, explained with its conjugations

What does “kawaii” mean in Japanese?

Native speakers say “kawaii” to mean ‘cute’ in Japanese. Probably, many Japanese learners know this word well because it is quite often used in Japanese songs, movies, and pop culture. In this blog post, however, I will explain this word in detail based on its kanji expression. And also, I will explain its major conjugations with example sentences. My explanations would help Japanese learners to understand “kawaii” more clearly. Then, let’s get started!

Contents

• Definition and meanings of “kawaii”
• Kawaii in kanji
  • Example #1: how to say “cute” in Japanese
• Kawaikunai: nai form of “kawaii”
  • Example #2: how to say “not cute” in Japanese
• Kawaikatta: ta form of “kawaii”
  • Example #3: how to say “was cute” in Japanese
• Kawaikute: te form of “kawaii”
  • Example #4: how to say “cute and” in Japanese
• Kawaikereba: ba form of “kawaii”
  • Example #5: how to say “if cute” in Japanese
• Summary

Definition and meanings of “kawaii”

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

• kawaii – 可愛い (かわいい) : an i-adjectivne meaning ‘cute’ or ‘pretty’ in Japanese.

Japanese native speakers use this adjective to describe something cute, pretty, or adorable. It can work as both a modifier and a complement. So, its usage is very similar to the English adjectives like “cute”, “pretty”, and so on.

The definition and meanings are simple and clear, I think. To understand this adjective more clearly, however, let me explain its kanji characters in detail.

Kawaii in kanji

The kanji expression of “kawaii” came from the phonetic equivalent; the kanji characters were picked just to make the same pronunciation as its original hiragana expression had. Interestingly, however, the picked kanji characters are very helpful to understand the concept of “kawaii”. So, let me explain them as follows, one by one:

• 可 : a kanji character often used to mean ‘possible’ or ‘acceptable’. In addition, this kanji is sometimes used as a prefix or suffix to add the meaning of ‘-able’ to the words used together.
• 愛 : a kanji character widely used to mean ‘love’.

From these two kanji characters, we can understand that “kawaii” literally means ‘love-able’ in Japanese. This literal interpretation is not completely in line with the meanings, but still very close, I think. Love-able things are often cute or pretty. Interestingly, its structure is very close to that of the English word, “adorable”. Perhaps, the concept of the things we can love is common in both languages.

When we meet new kanji expressions, we should check their kanji characters in detail to understand their meanings clearly and deeply. In many cases, kanji characters tell us a lot about meanings of words they form. Actually, here, we could get the better understanding of “kawaii” through the detailed kanji check above.

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

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

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• akachan – 赤ちゃん (あかちゃん) : a noun meaning ‘baby’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural. Learn more about Japanese plural.
• wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this works after “akachan” to make the subject word in the sentence.
• desu – です : an auxiliary verb used after a noun or adjective to make it polite. Probably, this is well known as a part of Japanese desu form. In the example, this is used after “kawaii” to make it sound polite.
• ne – ね : a sentence-ending particle used to ask for agreement softly. As its definition suggests, this is used at the end of the example sentence to mean “aren’t they?” in Japanese.

This is a typical usage of “kawaii”. In this example, it works as a complement in the sentence. Again, but it can also work as a modifier to describe its following noun. So, for example, we can say “kawaii akachan” to mean ‘cute babies’ in Japanese. These roles of “kawaii” are very similar to those of “cute” in English. So, Japanese learners, especially those who are familiar with English, can easily understand how to use it, I think.

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

Kawaikunai: nai form of “kawaii”

Below are the definition and meanings of “kawaikunai”.

• kawaikunai – 可愛くない (かわいくない) : the nai form of “kawaii” meaning ‘not cute’ or ‘not pretty’ in Japanese.

Grammatically, this nai form consists of the following two parts:

• kawaiku – 可愛く (かわいく) : one conjugation of “kawaii”. This can have a smooth 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 “nai” is similar to that of “not”.

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

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

Below is the new word used in the example sentence.

• kare – 彼 (かれ) : a pronoun meaning ‘he’ in Japanese.

This is a typical usage of “kawaikunai”. When we want to say “not cute” in Japanese, this nai form is a very good option.

Kawaikatta: ta form of “kawaii”

Below are the definition and meanings of “kawaikatta”.

• kawaikatta – 可愛かった (かわいかった) : the ta form of “kawaii” meaning ‘was cute’, ‘were cute’, or such in Japanese.

Grammatically, this ta form consists of the following two parts:

• kawaikat – 可愛かっ (かわいかっ) : one conjugation of “kawaii”. This can have a smooth 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 “kawaikatta” is literally the ta form of “kawaii”. In Japanese, ta forms of words can work as their past tense forms. So, we can use “kawaikatta” to mean ‘was cute’, ‘were cute’, or such in Japanese. Then, let me explain how to use this ta form through the example sentence below.

Example #3: how to say “was cute” in Japanese

Below is the new word used in the example sentence.

• mukashi – 昔 (むかし) : a noun meaning ‘the past’ in Japanese. This can also work as an adverb to say “before”. In the example, this works as an adverb.

This is a typical usage of “kawaikatta”. When we want to say “was cute” in Japanese, this ta form is a very good choice.

Kawaikute: te form of “kawaii”

Below are the definition and meanings of “kawaikute”.

• kawaikute – 可愛くて (かわいくて) : the te form of “kawaii” meaning ‘cute’ or ‘pretty’ in Japanese.

Grammatically, this te form consists of the following two parts:

• kawaiku – 可愛く (かわいく) : one conjugation of “kawaii”. This can have a smooth connection with “te”.
• te – て : a conjunctive particle used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its te form.

From these two components, we can understand that “kawaikute” is literally the te form of “kawaii”. In Japanese, te forms of words have some important roles. One of them is make smooth connections of words. So, “kawaikute” is very useful when we want to use “kawaii” before another adjective or a verb with a smooth connection. Then, let me explain this usage through the example sentence below.

Example #4: how to say “cute and” in Japanese

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• kanojo – 彼女 (かのじょ) : a pronoun meaning ‘she’ in Japanese.
• kirei – 綺麗 (きれい) : one conjugation of the na-adjective, “kireina“, which means ‘beautiful’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.

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

Kawaikereba: ba form of “kawaii”

Below are the definition and meanings of “kawaikereba”.

• kawaikereba – 可愛ければ (かわいければ) : the ba form of “kawaii” working to make a conditional clause in a sentence.

Grammatically, this ba form consists of the following two parts:

• kawaikere – 可愛けれ (かわいけれ) : one conjugation of “kawaii”. This can have a smooth connection with “ba”.
• ba – ば : a conjunctive particle used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its ba form.

From these two components, we can understand that “kawaikereba” is literally the ba form of “kawaii”. In Japanese, ba forms of words can work as their conditional forms. So, we can use “kawaikereba” to make a conditional clause in a sentence with the meaning of ‘cute’ or ‘pretty’. Let me explain this usage through the example sentence below.

Example #5: how to say “if cute” in Japanese

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• serebu – セレブ (せれぶ) : a noun meaning ‘celebrity’ in Japanese. This is an imported word.
• ni – に : a case particle used to say what someone or something becomes. In the example, this is used after “serebu” to say what “I” could become.
• na – な : one conjugation of the verb, “naru”, which means ‘to become’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
• re – れ : one conjugation of the auxiliary verb, “reru”, which is used after a verb to make its potential form. In the example, this is used after “na” to make its potential form, “na re”, which means ‘can become’.
• ta – た : the same as used in “kawaikatta”. In the example, this is used after the verb phrase, “na re”, to make its past tense form which means ‘could become’.

This is a typical usage of “kawaikereba”. In the example, it works to make the conditional clause in the sentence which means ‘if I were cute’. When we want to say “if cute” or “if pretty” in Japanese, this ba form is useful.

Summary

In this blog post, I’ve explained the definition and meanings of “kawaii” in detail based on its kanji expression. And also, I’ve explained its major conjugations with the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.

• kawaii – 可愛い (かわいい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘cute’ or ‘pretty’ in Japanese. This can work as both a modifier and a complement.
• kawaikunai – 可愛くない (かわいくない) : the nai form of “kawaii” meaning ‘not cute’ or ‘not pretty’ in Japanese.
• kawaikatta – 可愛かった (かわいかった) : the ta form of “kawaii” meaning ‘was cute’, ‘were cute’, or such in Japanese.
• kawaikute – 可愛くて (かわいくて) : the te form of “kawaii” meaning ‘cute’ or ‘pretty’ in Japanese. When we want to use “kawaii” before another adjective or a verb with a smooth connection, this te form is very useful.
• kawaikereba – 可愛ければ (かわいければ) : the ba form of “kawaii” working to make a conditional clause in a sentence. When we want to say “if cute” or “if pretty” in Japanese, this ba form is useful.

Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.