Short in Japanese: mijikai, explained with its major conjugations

How to say “short” in Japanese

There are multiple ways to say “short” in Japanese. In this blog post, however, I will focus on the most widely-used i-adjective, “mijikai”. I will explain this word and its major conjugations with example sentences. Let’s get started!

Contents

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

Definition and meaning of “mijikai”

Below are the definition and meaning of “mijikai”.

• mijikai – 短い (みじかい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘short’ in Japanese.

Its definition and meaning are very simple and clear, I think. Then, let me explain how to use it through the example sentence below.

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

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• watashi – 私 (わたし) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese.
• no – の : a case particle used after a noun or pronoun to make its possessive case. In the example, this case particle is used after “watashi” to make its possessive case, “watashi no“, which means ‘my’ in Japanese.
• katana – 刀 (かたな) : a noun meaning ‘sword’ in Japanese. This can also work as a plural noun meaning ‘swords’. Learn more about Japanese plural.
• wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this is used after the noun phrase, “watashi no katana”, to make the subject in the sentence.

This is a typical usage of “mijikai”. When we want to say “short” in Japanese, this i-adjective is a very good option. 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 “watashi no mijikai katana” to mean ‘my short sword’ in Japanese. It’s wroth knowing, I think.

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

Nai form of “mijikai”

Below are the definition and meaning of “mijikakunai”.

• mijikakunai – 短くない (みじかくない) : the nai form of “mijikai”, meaning ‘not short’ in Japanese.

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

• mijikaku – 短く (みじかく) : one conjugation of “mijikai”. This can have the better connection with “nai”.
• nai – ない : an auxiliary verb used after a verb or adjective 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 “mijikakunai” is literally the nai form of “mijikai” and means ‘not short’ in Japanese. Then, let me explain how to use it through the example sentence below.

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

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• fuyu – 冬 (ふゆ) : a noun meaning ‘winter’ in Japanese.
• no – の : a case particle used to limit the meaning of its following word with the meaning of its preceding word based on relations like possessing and belonging. In the example, it is used to limit the meaning of “kage” with the meaning of “fuyu”. The formed phrase, “fuyu no kage”, has been translated as ‘the shadows in winter’.
• kage – 影 (かげ) : a noun meaning ‘shadow’ in Japanese. This can also work as a plural noun.

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

Ta form of “mijikai”

Below are the definition and meaning of “mijikakatta”.

• mijikakatta – 短かった (みじかかった) : the ta form of “mijikai”, working as its past tense form. So, this means ‘was short’ or ‘were short’ in Japanese.

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

• mijikakat – 短かっ (みじかかっ) : one conjugation of “mijikai”. This can have the better connection with “ta”.
• ta – た : an auxiliary verb used after a verb or adjective to make its ta form.

From these two components, we can understand that “mijikakatta” is literally the ta form of “mijikai”. In Japanese, ta forms of verbs and adjectives can work as their past tense forms. So, we can say “mijikakatta” to mean ‘was short’ or ‘were short’ 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 “mijikai”

Below is the new word used in the example sentence.

• natsu – 夏 (なつ) : a noun meaning ‘summer’ in Japanese.

This is a typical usage of “mijikakatta”. When we want to say “were short” in Japanese, this ta form would be a good option.

Te form of “mijikai”

Below are the definition and meaning of “mijikakute”.

• mijikakute – 短くて (みじかくて) : the te form of “mijikai”.

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

• mijikaku – 短く (みじかく) : one conjugation of “mijikai”. This can have the better connection with “te”.
• te – て : a conjunctive particle used after a verb or adjective to make its te form.

A te form of an adjective can have a smooth connection with another adjective or a verb. So, “mijikakute” 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 “mijikai” before another adjective

Below is the new word used in the example sentence.

• yowai – 弱い (よわい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘weak’ in Japanese.

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

Ba form of “mijikai”

Below are the definition and meaning of “mijikakereba”.

• mijikakereba – 短ければ (みじかければ) : the ba form of “mijikai”, used to make a conditional clause with the meaning of ‘short’.

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

• mijikakere – 短けれ (みじかけれ) : one conjugation of “mijikai”. 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, “mijikakereba” can work to make a conditional clause with the meaning of ‘short’. Let me explain how to use it through the example sentence below.

Example #5: how to use “mijikakereba”

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• kami – 髪 (かみ) : a noun meaning ‘hair’ in Japanese.
• ga – が : a case particle used to make the subject word or the object word in a sentence. In the example, it is used after “kami” to make the subject word in the conditional clause.
• kono – この : a determiner used before a noun which refers to a thing close to the speaker. In the example, it is used before “heasutairu” to say “this hairstyle” in Japanese.
• heasutairu – ヘアスタイル (へあすたいる) : a noun meaning ‘hairstyle’ in Japanese. This is an imported word.
• wo – を : a case particle used to make the object word in a sentence. In the example, it is used after “heasutairu” to make the object in the second clause.
• susume – 勧め (すすめ) : one conjugation of the verb, “susumeru”, which means ‘to recommend’ in Japanese.
• masu – ます : an auxiliary verb used after a verb to make it polite. In the example, this is used after “susume” to make it sound polite.

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

Summary

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

• mijikai – 短い (みじかい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘short’ in Japanese. This can work as both a modifier and a complement.
• mijikakunai – 短くない (みじかくない) : the nai form of “mijikai”, meaning ‘not short’ in Japanese.
• mijikakatta – 短かった (みじかかった) : the ta form of “mijikai”, working as its past tense form. So, this ta form means ‘was short’ or ‘were short’ in Japanese.
• mijikakute – 短くて (みじかくて) : the te form of “mijikai”. This can have a smooth connection with another adjective or a verb. This is useful when we want to use adjectives in a row.
• mijikakereba – 短ければ (みじかければ) : the ba form of “mijikai”, used to make a conditional clause with the meaning of ‘short’.

Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.