Shinpai is the Japanese word for ‘worry’, explained based on the kanji

What does “shinpai” mean in Japanese?

Japanese people say “shinpai” to mean ‘worry’ in Japanese, but its usage is not limited to this particular purpose. In this blog post, therefore, I will explain this word in detail based on its kanji expression. And also, I will explain its verb form which means ‘to worry’ in Japanese. Let’s get started!

Contents

• Definition and meanings of “shinpai”
• “Shinpai” in kanji
  • Example #1: how to use “shinpai”
• Verb form: “shinpai suru”
  • Example #2: how to say “to worry” in Japanese
• Summary

Definition and meanings of “shinpai”

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

• shinpai – 心配 (しんぱい) : a noun meaning ‘worry’ or ‘anxiety’ in Japanese. Depending on the situation and context, it can also mean ‘concern’, ‘fear’, or ‘care’.

Grammatically it is a noun, but can also work like an interjection especially in speaking. In fact, Japanese people often use this word like an interjection to mean ‘I’m worried’ or ‘I’m anxious’ in conversations.

The definition and meanings are not so difficult, I think. To understand this word more clearly, however, let me explain its kanji characters in detail, one by one.

“Shinpai” in kanji

Below are the kanji characters used in the word, “shinpai”.

• 心 : a kanji character widely used to mean ‘mind’, ‘feeling’, ‘heart’, or ‘spirit’ in Japanese. This kanji can also be found in other words like “kokoro“.
• 配 : a kanji character widely used to mean ‘to deliver’ or ‘to give’ in Japanese.

From these two kanji characters, we can understand that “shinpai” literally means ‘heart delivering’ or ‘heart giving’. In the Japanese language, therefore, worrying is the act of heart delivering or heart giving. This concept is very beautiful, I think. I really like it.

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

Example #1: how to use “shinpai”

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• sore – それ : a demonstrative pronoun meaning ‘that’ in Japanese. It refers to a thing not close to the speaker or the listener.
• ga – が : a case particle used to make the subject word or the object word in a sentence. In the example, it is put after “sore” to make the subject word in the sentence.
• watashi – 私 (わたし) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese.
• no – の : a case particle put after a noun or pronoun to make its possessive case. In the example, it is put after “watashi” to make its possessive case, “watashi no“, which means ‘my’ in Japanese.
• desu – です : an auxiliary verb put after a noun or adjective to make it polite. Probably it is well known as a part of Japanese desu form. In the example, it is put after “shinpai” to make it sound polite.

This is a typical usage of “shinpai”. In this example, it works as a noun to mean ‘worry’ in Japanese. When we want to say “worry” in Japanese, it would be a good option in most cases.

Next, then, let me explain how to say “to worry” in Japanese.

Verb form: “shinpai suru”

Below are the definition and meanings of the verb form.

• shinpai suru – 心配する (しんぱいする) : a verb meaning ‘to worry’ or ‘to care’ in Japanese.

“Suru” is used here. Normally it works as a verb to mean ‘to do’, ‘to perform’, or such in Japanese. When it is used after a noun, however, it can work to make the verb form of the preceding noun. So, when it is used after “shinpai”, it can work to make the verb form which means ‘to worry’ or ‘to care’ in Japanese.

Then, let me explain how to use this verb form through the example sentence below.

Example #2: how to say “to worry” 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.
• wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, it is put after “kanojo” to make the subject word in the sentence.
• kare – 彼 (かれ) : a pronoun meaning ‘he’ in Japanese.
• no – の : the same as explained in the last example. In this example, it is put after “kare” to make its possessive case, “kare no”, which means ‘his’ in Japanese.
• shourai – 将来 (しょうらい) : a noun meaning ‘future’ in Japanese.
• wo – を : a case particle used to make the object word in a sentence. In the example, it is put after the noun phrase, “kare no shourai”, to make the object in the sentence.
• shinpai shi – 心配し (しんぱいし) : one conjugation of the verb, “shinpai suru”, which means ‘to worry’ in Japanese. Its conjugations are basically subjected to those of “suru”. So, we can focus only on its “suru” part for its conjugations. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
• te – て : a conjunctive particle put after a verb or adjective to make its te form. In the example, it is put after “shinpai shi” to make its te form, “shinpai shi te”. Verbs need to be changed to their te forms to be connected with “iru”.
• iru – いる : an auxiliary verb used to express the continuity of the action described by its preceding verb. In the example, it is put after the te-formed verb, “shinpai shi te”, to express the continuity of its action, ‘to worry’.

This is a typical usage of “shinpai suru”. In this example, it is used to mean ‘to worry’ with conjugated. When we want to mean ‘to worry’ in Japanese, it would be a good choice.

Summary

In this blog post, I’ve explained “shinpai” in detail based on its kanji expression. And also, I’ve explained its verb form which means ‘to worry’ or ‘to care’ in Japanese. Let me summarize them as follows.

• shinpai – 心配 (しんぱい) : a noun meaning ‘worry’ or ‘anxiety’ in Japanese. Depending on the situation and context, it can also mean ‘concern’, ‘fear’, or ‘care’. These two kanji characters literally mean ‘heart delivering’ or ‘heart giving’. So, in the Japanese language, worrying is the act of heart delivering or heart giving.
• shinpai suru – 心配する (しんぱいする) : a verb meaning ‘to worry’ or ‘to care’ in Japanese. This is the verb form of the noun, “shinpai”.

Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.