Saitei and Saikou in Japanese: ‘lowest’ and ‘highest’, explained in detail

What does “saitei” and “saikou” mean in Japanese?

Native speakers use “saitei” and “saikou” to mean ‘minimum’ and ‘maximum’ respectively. So, these two words are antonyms. In this blog post, I will explain them in detail based on their kanji expressions. And also, I will explain how native speakers use them in conversations through example sentences. My explanations would help Japanese learners to understand “saitei” and “saikou” more clearly. Then, let’s get started!

Contents

• Definition and meanings of “saitei”
• “Saitei” in kanji
  • Example #1: how to say “lowest” in Japanese
  • Example #2: how to use “saitei” in a casual way
• Definition and meanings of “saikou”
• “Saikou” in kanji
  • Example #3: how to say “highest” in Japanese
  • Example #4: how to use “saikou” in a casual way
• Summary

Definition and meanings of “saitei”

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

• saitei – 最低 (さいてい) : a noun meaning ‘minimum’ in Japanese. This can also work like an adjective to mean ‘worst’ or ‘lowest’.

In the Japanese language, the border between nouns and some adjectives called na-adjectives is very ambiguous. Basically, every na-adjective consists of one noun and one conjugative suffix. And Japanese people often omit the suffix of a na-adjective. This results in making it look like a noun. “Saitei” is grammatically a noun, but can work like the shortened version of the na-adjective, “saiteina”, which means ‘worst’, ‘lowest’, or such in Japanese.

Compared to the definition, the meanings are simple and clear, I think. They all seem to have the same concept. To understand this word more clearly, however, let me explain its kanji characters in detail, one by one.

“Saitei” in kanji

The kanji expression of “saitei” consists of the following two characters:

• 最 : a kanji character often used as a prefix to add the meaning of ‘most’.
• 低 : a kanji character used to mean ‘low’, ‘bad’, or ‘small’ in amount, level, or value.

From these two kanji characters, we can understand that “saitei” literally means ‘the most low’ in Japanese. This kanji concept seems to be in line with the meanings.

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 “saitei” through the detailed kanji check above.

Then, let me explain how to use “saitei” through the example sentences below.

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

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• watashi – 私 (わたし) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese.
• wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this works after “watashi” to make the subject word in the sentence.
• gakkou – 学校 (がっこう) : a noun meaning ‘school’ in Japanese.
• de – で : a case particle used to say what area, group, or scope something is within. In the example, this is used after “gakkou” to say what group the score is the lowest within.
• no – の : a case particle used to join two nouns. Normally, the first noun can work as a modifier to describe the second. In the example, this is used to join “saitei” and “ten”. The formed phrase literally means ‘the lowest score’ in Japanese.
• ten – 点 (てん) : a noun meaning ‘score’ or ‘point’ in Japanese. This can also work as a plural noun. Learn more about Japanese plural.
• wo – を : a case particle working to make the object word in a sentence. In the example, this works after the noun phrase, “gakkou de saitei no ten”, to make the object in the sentence.
• tot – 取っ (とっ) : one conjugation of the verb, “toru”, which means ‘to get’, ‘to take’, or such in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
• ta – た : an auxiliary verb used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its past tense form. In the example, this is used after “tot” to make its past tense form, “tot ta”.

This is a typical usage of “saitei”. In this example, it works as a part of the noun phrase, “gakkou de saitei no ten”, which means ‘the lowest score in the school’. When we want to say “lowest” in Japanese, this word is a very good option.

Example #2: how to use “saitei” in a casual way

Next, let me explain how Japanese people use “saitei” casually in conversations.

Below is the new word used in the example sentence.

• anata – あなた : a pronoun meaning ‘you’ in Japanese. Learn more about this pronoun.

This is how Japanese people use “saitei” casually in conversations. They use it to describe someone or something awful.

So far, I’ve explained the definition and meanings of “saitei” based on its kanji expression. And also, I’ve explained how to use it through the example sentences. Next, let me explain its antonym: “saikou”.

Definition and meanings of “saikou”

Below are the definition and meanings of “saikou”.

• saikou – 最高 (さいこう) : a noun meaning ‘maximum’ in Japanese. This can also work like an adjective to mean ‘best’ or ‘highest’.

This is the antonym of “saitei” and basically has the same kanji structure, but let me explain its kanji characters in detail, one by one.

“Saikou” in kanji

The kanji expression of “saikou” consists of the following two characters:

• 最 : the same as explained already. This is a kanji character often used as a prefix to add the meaning of ‘most’.
• 高 : a kanji character used to mean ‘high’, ‘good’, or ‘large’ in amount, level, or value.

From these two kanji characters, we can understand that “saikou” literally means ‘the most high’ in Japanese. This kanji concept seems to be in line with the meanings.

Then, let me explain how to use “saikou” through the example sentences below.

Example #3: how to say “highest” 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 “saikou”. In this example, it works as a part of the noun phrase, “gakkou de saikou no ten”, which means ‘the highest score in the school’. When we want to say “highest” in Japanese, this word is a very good option.

Example #4: how to use “saikou” in a casual way

Lastly, let me explain how Japanese people use “saikou” casually in conversations.

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 how Japanese people use “saikou” casually in conversations. They use it to describe someone or something awesome.

Summary

In this blog post, I’ve explained the definitions and meanings of “saitei” and “saikou” based on their kanji expressions. And also, I’ve explained how to use them through the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.

• saitei – 最低 (さいてい) : a noun meaning ‘minimum’ in Japanese. This can also work like an adjective to mean ‘worst’ or ‘lowest’. These two kanji characters mean ‘most’ and ‘low’ respectively, so this noun literally means ‘the most low’ in Japanese. This is very useful when we want to describe something which has the lowest quality or quantity in a certain group. In casual conversations, Japanese people use this to describe someone or something awful.
• saikou – 最高 (さいこう) : a noun meaning ‘maximum’ in Japanese. This can also work like an adjective to mean ‘best’ or ‘highest’. These two kanji characters mean ‘most’ and ‘high’ respectively, so this noun literally means ‘the most high’ in Japanese. This is very useful when we want to describe something which has the highest quality or quantity in a certain group. In casual conversations, Japanese people use this to describe someone or something awesome.

Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.