Omoshiroi is the Japanese adjective for ‘funny’ or ‘interesting’, explained

What does “omoshiroi” mean in Japanese?

Japanese people say “omoshiroi” to mean ‘funny’, ‘interesting’, or such. 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 “omoshiroi”
  • Example #1: how to say “funny” in Japanese
• Nai form of “omoshiroi”
  • Example #2: how to say “not funny” in Japanese
• Ta form of “omoshiroi”
  • Example #3: how to use the past tense form of “omoshiroi”
• Te form of “omoshiroi”
  • Example #4: how to use “omoshiroi” before another adjective
• Ba form of “omoshiroi”
  • Example #5: how to use “omoshirokereba”
• Summary

Definition and meanings of “omoshiroi”

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

• omoshiroi – 面白い (おもしろい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘funny’, ‘interesting’, ‘humorous’, or such in Japanese.

Japanese native speakers use this i-adjective to describe something funny, interesting, or humorous. In daily conversations, it corresponds the most to the English adjective, “funny”, I think. Let me explain how to use it through the example sentence below.

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

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• kare – 彼 (かれ) : a pronoun meaning ‘he’ in Japanese.
• wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this is used after “kare” to make the subject word in the sentence.
• totemo – とても : an adverb of degree, meaning ‘very’, ‘much’, ‘so’, ‘pretty’, or such in Japanese. In the example, this is used before “omoshiroi” to emphasize its meaning.

This is a typical usage of “omoshiroi”. When we want to say “funny” in Japanese, this word would be the best choice. In the example, it works as a complement. Like other adjectives, however, it can also work as a modifier before a noun. So, its usages are very similar to those of “funny” in English.

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

Nai form of “omoshiroi”

Below are the definition and meanings of “omoshirokunai”.

• omoshirokunai – 面白くない (おもしろくない) : the nai form of “omoshiroi”, meaning ‘not funny’, ‘not interesting’, ‘not humorous’, or such in Japanese.

This nai form consists of the following two parts:

• omoshiroku – 面白く (おもしろく) : one conjugation of “omoshiroi”. 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 “omoshirokunai” is literally the nai form of “omoshiroi” and means ‘not funny’, ‘not interesting’, ‘not humorous’, or such in Japanese. Then, let me explain how to use it through the example sentence below.

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

Below is the new word used in the example sentence.

• kanojo – 彼女 (かのじょ) : a pronoun meaning ‘she’ in Japanese.

This is a typical usage of “omoshirokunai”. When we want to say “not funny” in Japanese, this nai form is a good choice.

Ta form of “omoshiroi”

Below are the definition and meanings of “omoshirokatta”.

• omoshirokatta – 面白かった (おもしろかった) : the ta form of “omoshiroi”, working as its past tense form. So, this means ‘was funny’, ‘were funny’, or such in Japanese.

This ta form consists of the following two parts:

• omoshirokat – 面白かっ (おもしろかっ) : one conjugation of “omoshiroi”. 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 “omoshirokatta” is literally the ta form of “omoshiroi”. In Japanese, ta forms of verbs and adjectives can work as their past tense forms. So, we can say “omoshirokatta” to mean ‘was funny’, ‘were funny’, or such in Japanese. Then, let me explain how to use this ta form through the example sentence below.

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

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• kono – この : a determiner used before a noun referring to a thing close to the speaker. In the example, this is used before “eiga” to say “this movie” in Japanese.
• eiga – 映画 (えいが) : a noun meaning ‘movie’ in Japanese. This can also work as a plural noun. Learn more about Japanese plural.
• 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, “kono eiga”, to make the subject in the sentence.

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

Te form of “omoshiroi”

Below are the definition and meanings of “omoshirokute”.

• omoshirokute – 面白くて (おもしろくて) : the te form of “omoshiroi”, meaning ‘funny’, ‘interesting’, ‘humorous’, or such in Japanese.

This te form consists of the following two parts:

• omoshiroku – 面白く (おもしろく) : one conjugation of “omoshiroi”. 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 smooth connection with another adjective or a verb. So, “omoshirokute” 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 “omoshiroi” before another adjective

Below is the new word used in the example sentence.

• yasashii – 優しい (やさしい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘kind’ in Japanese.

This is a typical usage of “omoshirokute”. In the example, it has the smooth connection with “yasashii”. When we want to use “omoshiroi” before another adjective, its te form is useful.

Ba form of “omoshiroi”

Below are the definition and meanings of “omoshirokereba”.

• omoshirokereba – 面白ければ (おもしろければ) : the ba form of “omoshiroi”, used to make a conditional clause in a sentence with the meaning of ‘funny’, ‘interesting’, ‘humorous’, or such in Japanese.

This ba form consists of the following two parts:

• omoshirokere – 面白けれ (おもしろけれ) : one conjugation of “omoshiroi”. This can have the better connection with “ba”.
• ba – ば : a conjunctive particle used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its ba form.

In Japanese, ba forms of verbs and adjectives can work as their conditional forms. So, we can use “omoshirokereba” to make a conditional clause in a sentence with the meaning of ‘funny’, ‘interesting’, ‘humorous’, or such in Japanese. Let me explain how to use it through the example sentence below.

Example #5: how to use “omoshirokereba”

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• oshie – 教え (おしえ) : one conjugation of the verb, “oshieru”, which means ‘to tell’, ‘to teach’, ‘to inform’, or such in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
• te – て : the same as used in “omoshirokute”. In this example, this is used after “oshie” to make its te form. Verbs need to be changed to their te forms to be connected with “kudasai”.
• kudasai – ください : an auxiliary verb used after a verb to make its command form with adding the meaning of ‘please’. In the example, this is used after the te-formed verb, “oshie te”, to make its command form with adding the meaning of ‘please’.

This is a typical usage of “omoshirokereba”. In this example, it works as a part of the conditional clause which means ‘if this movie is funny’. When we want to make a conditional clause in a sentence with the meaning of ‘funny’, ‘interesting’, ‘humorous’, or such, this ba forms is useful.

Summary

In this blog post, I’ve explained the i-adjective, “omoshiroi”, and its major conjugations. And also, I’ve explained how to use them through the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.

• omoshiroi – 面白い (おもしろい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘funny’, ‘interesting’, ‘humorous’, or such in Japanese. This can work as both a modifier and a complement.
• omoshirokunai – 面白くない (おもしろくない) : the nai form of “omoshiroi”, meaning ‘not funny’, ‘not interesting’, ‘not humorous’, or such in Japanese.
• omoshirokatta – 面白かった (おもしろかった) : the ta form of “omoshiroi”, working as its past tense form. So, this means ‘was funny’, ‘were funny’, or such in Japanese.
• omoshirokute – 面白くて (おもしろくて) : the te form of “omoshiroi”, meaning ‘funny’, ‘interesting’, ‘humorous’, or such in Japanese. When we want to use “omoshiroi” before another adjective, this form is useful.
• omoshirokereba – 面白ければ (おもしろければ) : the ba form of “omoshiroi”, used to make a conditional clause in a sentence with the meaning of ‘funny’, ‘interesting’, ‘humorous’, or such in Japanese.

Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.