Urayamashii is the Japanese adjective for ‘jealous’, explained

What does “urayamashii” mean in Japanese?

Japanese people say “urayamashii” to mean ‘jealous’ in Japanese. In this blog post, I will explain this word with its major conjugations. And also, I will explain how to use them through example sentences. My explanations would help Japanese learners to use “urayamashii” properly. Then, let’s get started!

Contents

• Definition and meaning of “urayamashii”
  • Example #1: how to say “jealous” in Japanese
• Nai form of “urayamashii”
  • Example #2: how to say “not jealous” in Japanese
• Ta form of “urayamashii”
  • Example #3: how to say “was jealous” in Japanese
• Te form of “urayamashii”
  • Example #4: how to say “jealous and” in Japanese
• Ba form of “urayamashii”
  • Example #5: how to say “if jealous” in Japanese
• Summary

Definition and meaning of “urayamashii”

Let me start with the definition and meaning of “urayamashii”.

• urayamashii – 羨ましい (うらやましい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘jealous’ in Japanese. This is an i-adjective, but sometimes translated into English as ‘envy’.

The definition and meaning are very simple and clear, I think. Let me explain how to use this through the example sentence below.

Example #1: how to say “jealous” 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 is used after “watashi” to make the subject word in the sentence.
• inu – 犬 (いぬ) : a noun meaning ‘dog’ 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 “inu” to make the object word in the sentence.

This is a typical usage of “urayamashii”. Like this example, Japanese people normally use it after the object word in a sentence. Word orders in Japanese and English are different, but its role is still very similar to that of “jealous”, I think.

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

Nai form of “urayamashii”

Below are the definition and meaning of “urayamashikunai”.

• urayamashikunai – 羨ましくない (うらやましくない) : the nai form of “urayamashii”, meaning ‘not jealous’ in Japanese.

Grammatically, “urayamashikunai” consists of the following two parts:

• urayamashiku – 羨ましく (うらやましく) : one conjugation of “urayamashii”. 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 this auxiliary verb is similar to that of “not”.

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

Example #2: how to say “not jealous” 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 “urayamashikunai”. When we want to say “not jealous” in Japanese, this nai form is a very good choice.

Ta form of “urayamashii”

Below are the definition and meaning of “urayamashikatta”.

• urayamashikatta – 羨ましかった (うらやましかった) : the ta form of “urayamashii”, meaning ‘was jealous’ or ‘were jealous’ in Japanese.

Grammatically, “urayamashikatta” consists of the following two parts:

• urayamashikat – 羨ましかっ (うらやましかっ) : one conjugation of “urayamashii”. 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 “urayamashikatta” is literally the ta form of “urayamashii”. In Japanese, ta forms of words can work as their past tense forms. So, we can say “urayamashikatta” to mean ‘was jealous’ or ‘were jealous’ in Japanese. Then, let me explain how to use it through the example sentence below.

Example #3: how to say “was jealous” 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 “urayamashikatta”. When we want to say “was jealous” in Japanese, this ta form is a very good option.

Te form of “urayamashii”

Below are the definition and meaning of “urayamashikute”.

• urayamashikute – 羨ましくて (うらやましくて) : the te form of “urayamashii”, meaning ‘jealous’ in Japanese.

Grammatically, “urayamashikute” consists of the following two parts:

• urayamashiku – 羨ましく (うらやましく) : one conjugation of “urayamashii”. 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 “urayamashikute” is literally the te form of “urayamashii”. In Japanese, te forms of words have some important roles. One of them is make smooth connections of words. Actually, “urayamashikute” is very useful when we want to use “urayamashii” before a verb or another adjective with a smooth connection. Let me explain this usage through the example sentence below.

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

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• tomodachi – 友達 (ともだち) : a noun meaning ‘friends’ in Japanese. This can also work as a singular noun.
• kanashii – 悲しい (かなしい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘sad’ in Japanese.

This is a typical usage of “urayamashikute”. In this example, it has the smooth connection with “kanashii”. When we want to use “urayamashii” before another adjective with a smooth connection, its te form is very useful.

Ba form of “urayamashii”

Below are the definition and meaning of “urayamashikereba”.

• urayamashikereba – 羨ましければ (うらやましければ) : the ba form of “urayamashii”, working to make a conditional clause in a sentence with the meaning of “jealous”.

Grammatically, “urayamashikereba” consists of the following two parts:

• urayamashikere – 羨ましけれ (うらやましけれ) : one conjugation of “urayamashii”. 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 “urayamashikereba” is literally the ba form of “urayamashii”. In Japanese, ba forms of words can work as their conditional forms. So, we can use “urayamashikereba” to make a conditional clause in a sentence with the meaning of “jealous”. Let me explain this usage through the example sentence below.

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

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• motto – もっと : an adverb of degree, meaning ‘more’ in Japanese.
• doryoku shi – 努力し (どりょくし) : one conjugation of the verb, “doryoku suru”, which means ‘to make an effort’ or ‘to make efforts’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
• te – て : the same as used in “urayamashikute”. In this example, this is used after “doryoku shi” to make its te form, “doryoku shi te”. Verbs need to be changed to their te forms to be connected with “kudasai”.
• kudasai – ください : the command form of the verb, “kudasaru”, which means ‘to give’ in Japanese. When it follows a te-formed verb, however, it can work as an auxiliary verb to add the meaning of “please” to the preceding verb.

This is a typical usage of “urayamashikereba”. In this example, it works as a part of the conditional clause, “tomodachi ga urayamashikereba”, which means ‘if you feel jealous of your friends’. When we want to make a conditional clause in a sentence with the meaning of “jealous”, this ba form is very useful.

Summary

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

• urayamashii – 羨ましい (うらやましい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘jealous’ in Japanese. This is an i-adjective, but sometimes translated into English as ‘envy’.
• urayamashikunai – 羨ましくない (うらやましくない) : the nai form of “urayamashii”, meaning ‘not jealous’ in Japanese.
• urayamashikatta – 羨ましかった (うらやましかった) : the ta form of “urayamashii”, meaning ‘was jealous’ or ‘were jealous’ in Japanese.
• urayamashikute – 羨ましくて (うらやましくて) : the te form of “urayamashii”, meaning ‘jealous’ in Japanese. When we want to use “urayamashii” before another adjective or a verb with a smooth connection, this te form is useful.
• urayamashikereba – 羨ましければ (うらやましければ) : the ba form of “urayamashii”, working to make a conditional clause in a sentence with the meaning of “jealous”.

Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.