甘い

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Japanese

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
甘
あま
Grade: S
kun'yomi

From Old Japanese. First attested in the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE.[1] From Proto-Japonic *ama.

Pronunciation

  • Tokyo pitch accent of inflected forms of 「甘い」
Source: Online Japanese Accent Dictionary
Stem forms
Continuative (連用形) 甘く あまく
Terminal (終止形) 甘い あまい
あまい
Attributive (連体形) 甘い あまい
Key constructions
Informal negative 甘くない あまくない
Informal past 甘かった あまかった
Informal negative past 甘くなかった あまくなかった
Formal 甘いです あまいです
Conjunctive 甘くて あまくて
Conditional 甘ければ あまければ

Adjective

甘(あま)い • (amai) -i (adverbial 甘(あま)く (amaku))

  1. sweet, sugary, mellow
    Antonyms: 辛い (karai), 苦い (nigai), 酸っぱい (suppai)
    甘(あま)いケーキ ― amai kēki ― sweet cake
  2. lacking saltiness
    Antonym: 塩っぱい (shoppai)
  3. indulgent, soft
    女子(じょし)に甘(あま)い ― joshi ni amai ― soft on girls
  4. careless, lacking, lax
    作(つく)りが甘(あま)い ― tsukuri ga amai ― the construction is careless → flimsy, slapdash, slipshod
    管理(かんり)が甘(あま)い ― kanri ga amai ― the management is lax → poorly managed
  5. (figurative) fragrant (of odor), melodious (of sound)
    ゆりは甘(あま)い香(かお)りがする。 ― Yuri wa amai kaori ga suru. ― Lilies have a fragrant smell.

Inflection
Inflection of 甘い
Stem forms
Imperfective (未然形) 甘かろ あまかろ amakaro
Continuative (連用形) 甘く あまく amaku
Terminal (終止形) 甘い あまい amai
Attributive (連体形) 甘い あまい amai
Hypothetical (仮定形) 甘けれ あまけれ amakere
Imperative (命令形) 甘かれ あまかれ amakare
Key constructions
Informal negative 甘くない あまくない amaku nai
Informal past 甘かった あまかった amakatta
Informal negative past 甘くなかった あまくなかった amaku nakatta
Formal 甘いです あまいです amai desu
Formal negative 甘くないです あまくないです amaku nai desu
Formal past 甘かったです あまかったです amakatta desu
Formal negative past 甘くなかったです あまくなかったです amaku nakatta desu
Conjunctive 甘くて あまくて amakute
Conditional 甘ければ あまければ amakereba
Provisional 甘かったら あまかったら amakattara
Volitional 甘かろう あまかろう amakarō
Adverbial 甘く あまく amaku
Degree 甘さ あまさ amasa
Derived terms
See also
Basic tastes in Japanese · 味覚(みかく) (mikaku) (layout · text)
甘(あま)い (amai) 酸(す)っぱい (suppai) 塩(しょ)っぱい (shoppai) 苦(にが​)い (niga​i) 辛(から​)い (kara​i) 旨味(うまみ) (umami)

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
甘
うま
Grade: S
kun'yomi
For pronunciation and definitions of 甘い – see the following entry.
【うまい】
美味い, 旨い, 甘い, 甘美い: delicious, tasty
Alternative spellings
美味い, 旨い, 甘美い
(This term, 甘い, is an alternative spelling of the above term.)

References

  1. ^ “甘”, in 日本国語大辞典 [Nihon Kokugo Daijiten]‎ (in Japanese), concise edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2006
  2. ^ Kindaichi, Kyōsuke et al., editors (1974), 新明解国語辞典 [Shin Meikai Kokugo Jiten] (in Japanese), Second edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō
  3. ^ NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute, editor (1998), NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 [NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary] (in Japanese), Tokyo: NHK Publishing, Inc., →ISBN
  4. ^ Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
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