How do you say "hate" in Japanese?

嫌う

kirau

Verb Kanji

In Japanese, "hate" is 嫌う (kirau).

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Pronunciation

Ki-rau, two syllables, the final 'rau' rhymes with 'now', giving the word a downward, grumbling tone.

Writing and usage

嫌う is written using kanji. It's a verb, and this word is also taught inside the Noun Town language learning game, where it appears in interactive lessons alongside hundreds of other everyday words.

Example sentence

寒い中起きるのが嫌いだ。

samui naka oki runoga kirai da.

I hate getting up in the cold.

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How to remember 嫌う

Kirau sounds like 'key, ow' — turning the key the wrong way hurts, and that's how much you hate it.

Related words

Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.

Questions about 嫌う

How do you pronounce 嫌う?

Ki-rau, two syllables, the final 'rau' rhymes with 'now', giving the word a downward, grumbling tone.

Is 嫌う formal or casual?

嫌う is a neutral, everyday word that works in both casual and polite speech. The level of formality comes from the sentence structure around it, not from the word itself.

How is 嫌う written in Japanese?

嫌う is written using kanji. Romanised, it reads as kirau.

Where can I practice Japanese words for free?

You can play free Japanese minigames in your browser on the Noun Town online games page, with no sign-up needed. Every word in the Japanese glossary also has native audio and an example sentence you can revisit any time.

"Hate" in other languages

Curated by Callan Ratcliffe

This word is part of the vocabulary taught in the Japanese language learning game Noun Town, where words are introduced through play rather than memorisation. Want to play the full game? Get Noun Town on Steam.

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