What does “usui” mean in Japanese?
Native speakers say “usui” often to mean ‘thin’ in Japanese. Perhaps, some Japanese learners know this word as it is sometimes used in Japanese conversations. In this blog post, however, I will explain it together with its major conjugations. And also, I will explain how to use them through example sentences. My explanations would help Japanese learners use “usui” more properly. Then, let’s get started!
Contents
- Definition and meanings of “usui”
- Usukunai: the nai form of “usui”
- Usukatta: the ta form of “usui”
- Usukute: the te form of “usui”
- Usukereba: the ba form of “usui”
- Summary
Definition and meanings of “usui”
Let me start with the definition and meanings of “usui”.
- usui – 薄い (うすい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘thin’ in Japanese. Depending on the words used together, this can also mean ‘light (in color)’ or ‘weak (in taste)’ in Japanese.
Japanese native speakers use this i-adjective often to describe something physically thin. It’s also worth mentioning here that they sometimes use this to mean ‘light (in color)’ or ‘weak (in taste)’ in Japanese.
The definition and meanings are not that difficult, I think. Then, let me explain how to use this i-adjective through the example sentence below.
Example #1: how to say “thin” in Japanese
watashi no heya no kabe wa usui – 私の部屋の壁は薄い (わたしのへやのかべはうすい)
The walls in my room are thin.
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 is used after “watashi” to make its possessive case, “watashi no“, which means ‘my’ in Japanese.
- heya – 部屋 (へや) : a noun meaning ‘room’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural. Learn more about Japanese plural.
- no – の : a case particle joining two nouns or noun equivalent words. Normally, the first one can work as a modifier to describe the second. In the example, this works to join “watashi no heya” and “kabe”. The formed phrase literally means ‘the walls in my room’ in Japanese. Word orders in Japanese and English are different, but the role of this case particle is similar to those of some English prepositions.
- kabe – 壁 (かべ) : a noun meaning ‘wall’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural.
- wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this works after “watashi no heya no kabe” to make the subject in the sentence.
This is a typical usage of “usui”. In this example, it works as the complement in the sentence. Like other adjectives, however, it can also work as a modifier in front of a noun. For example, we can say “usui kabe” to mean a ‘thin wall’ in Japanese. Anyway, when we want to mean ‘thin’ in Japanese, this i-adjective is a good option.
So far, I’ve explained the definition and meanings of “usui” and how to use it through the example sentence. In the rest part of this blog post, I will explain its major conjugations. The first one is “usukunai”.
Usukunai: the nai form of “usui”
Below are the definition and meanings of “usukunai”.
- usukunai – 薄くない (うすくない) : the nai form of “usui”, which means ‘not thin’, ‘not light (in color)’, or ‘not weak (in taste)’ in Japanese.
Grammatically, “usukunai” consists of the following two parts:
- usuku – 薄く (うすく) : one conjugation of “usui”. 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 parts, we can understand that “usukunai” is literally the nai form of “usui” and means ‘not thin’, ‘not light (in color)’, or ‘not weak (in taste)’ in Japanese. Then, let me explain how to use this form through the example sentence below.
Example #2: how to say “not thin” in Japanese
kono uwagi wa zenzen usukunai – この上着は全然薄くない (このうわぎはぜんぜんうすくない)
This jacket is not thin at all.
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 “uwagi” to say “this jacket” in Japanese.
- uwagi – 上着 (うわぎ) : a noun meaning ‘jacket’ or such in Japanese. This can also work as plural.
- zenzen – 全然 (ぜんぜん) : an adverb working in a negative sentence to mean ‘at all’ or such in Japanese.
This is a typical usage of “usukunai”. When we want to mean ‘not thin’ in Japanese, this nai form is a good option.
Usukatta: the ta form of “usui”
Below are the definition and meanings of “usukatta”.
- usukatta – 薄かった (うすかった) : the ta form of “usui”, which means ‘was thin’, ‘was light (in color)’, ‘was weak (in taste)’, or such in Japanese.
Grammatically, “usukatta” consists of the following two parts:
- usukat – 薄かっ (うすかっ) : one conjugation of “usui”. This can have a smooth connection with “ta”.
- ta – た : an auxiliary verb used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its past tense form. Probably, this is well known as a part of Japanese ta form.
From these two parts, we can understand that “usukatta” is literally the ta form of “usui” and means ‘was thin’, ‘was light (in color)’, ‘was weak (in taste)’, or such in Japanese. Let me explain how to use this form through the example sentence below.
Example #3: how to say “was thin” in Japanese
kanojo no uwagi wa totemo usukatta – 彼女の上着はとても薄かった (かのじょのうわぎはとてもうすかった)
Her jacket was very thin.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- kanojo – 彼女 (かのじょ) : a pronoun meaning ‘she’ in Japanese. In the example, this works together with the case particle, “no”, to say “her” in Japanese.
- totemo – とても : an adverb of degree meaning ‘very’, ‘much’, or such in Japanese. In the example, this works in front of “usukatta” to emphasize its meaning.
This is a typical usage of “usukatta”. When we want to use the past tense form of “usui”, this ta form is the best option.
Usukute: the te form of “usui”
Below are the definition and meanings of “usukute”.
- usukute – 薄くて (うすくて) : the te form of “usui”, which means ‘thin’, ‘light (in color)’, or ‘weak (in taste)’ in Japanese.
Grammatically, “usukute” consists of the following two parts:
- usuku – 薄く (うすく) : one conjugation of “usui”. 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 parts, we can understand that “usukute” is literally the te form of “usui”. In Japanese, te-formed words have some important roles. One of them is make smooth connections of words. So, “usukute” is very useful when we want to use “usui” in front of another adjective, a verb, or an auxiliary verb. Let me explain this usage through the example sentence below.
Example #4: how to say “thin and” in Japanese
boku no megane wa usukute karui – 僕の眼鏡は薄くて軽い (ぼくのめがねはうすくてかるい)
My glasses are thin and light.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- boku – 僕 (ぼく) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese. This is used mainly by boys and young males. In this example, this works together with the case particle, “no”, to say “my” in Japanese.
- megane – 眼鏡 (めがね) : a noun meaning ‘glasses’ in Japanese.
- karui – 軽い (かるい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘light’ in Japanese.
This is a typical usage of “usukute”. In the example, it has the smooth connection with “karui”. When we want to use “usui” in front of another adjective like this, its te form is very useful to make a smooth connection.
Usukereba: the ba form of “usui”
Lastly, let me explain the definition and meanings of “usukereba”.
- usukereba – 薄ければ (うすければ) : the ba form of “usui”, which makes a conditional clause in a sentence with meaning ‘thin’, ‘light (in color)’, or ‘weak (in taste)’ in Japanese.
Grammatically, “usukereba” consists of the following two parts:
- usukere – 薄けれ (うすけれ) : one conjugation of “usui”. 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 parts, we can understand that “usukereba” is literally the ba form of “usui”. In Japanese, the ba forms of words can work as their conditional forms. So, we can use “usukereba” to make a conditional clause in a sentence with adding the meaning of ‘thin’, ‘light (in color)’, or ‘weak (in taste)’ in Japanese. Let me explain this usage through the example sentence below.
Example #5: how to say “if thin” in Japanese
aji ga usukereba, shio wo tashi te kudasai – 味が薄ければ、塩を足してください (あじがうすければ、しおをたしてください)
If the taste is weak, please add some salt.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- aji – 味 (あじ) : a noun meaning ‘taste’ in Japanese. This can also work as 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 “aji” to make the subject in the conditional clause.
- shio – 塩 (しお) : a noun meaning ‘salt’ in Japanese.
- wo – を : a case particle used to make the object word in a sentence. In the example, this is used after “shio” to make the object in the second clause.
- tashi – 足し (たし) : one conjugation of the verb, “tasu”, which means ‘to add’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
- te – て : the same as used in “usukute”. In this example, this is used after “tashi” to make its te form. Verbs need to be changed to their te forms to be connected with “kudasai”.
- kudasai – ください : one conjugation of the verb, “kudasaru”, which means ‘to give’ or such in Japanese. When this follows a verb, however, this can work like an auxiliary verb to add the meaning of ‘please’. In this example, this works like an auxiliary verb after “tashi te” to add the meaning of ‘please’.
This is a typical usage of “usukereba”. In this example, it works as a part of the conditional clause, “aji ga usukereba”, which means ‘if the taste is weak’ in Japanese. When we want to make a conditional clause in a sentence with adding the meaning of ‘thin’, ‘light (in color)’, or ‘weak (in taste)’ in Japanese, this ba form is a very good option.
Summary
In this blog post, I’ve explained the definition and meanings of “usui” together with its major conjugations. And also, I’ve explained how to use them through the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.
- usui – 薄い (うすい) : an i-adjective meaning ‘thin’ in Japanese. Depending on the words used together, this can also mean ‘light (in color)’ or ‘weak (in taste)’ in Japanese. This can work as both a modifier and a complement.
- usukunai – 薄くない (うすくない) : the nai form of “usui”, which means ‘not thin’, ‘not light (in color)’, or ‘not weak (in taste)’ in Japanese.
- usukatta – 薄かった (うすかった) : the ta form of “usui”, which means ‘was thin’, ‘was light (in color)’, ‘was weak (in taste)’, or such in Japanese.
- usukute – 薄くて (うすくて) : the te form of “usui”, which means ‘thin’, ‘light (in color)’, or ‘weak (in taste)’ in Japanese. When we want to use “usui” in front of another adjective, this te form is very useful to make a smooth connection.
- usukereba – 薄ければ (うすければ) : the ba form of “usui”, which makes a conditional clause in a sentence with meaning ‘thin’, ‘light (in color)’, or ‘weak (in taste)’ in Japanese.
Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.
