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Japanese vocabulary · Beginner

How do you say "honest" in Japanese?

正直だ

shoujiki da

Adjective Kanji

In Japanese, "honest" is 正直だ (shoujiki da).

Listen to the pronunciation:

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Pronunciation

Pronounce shoh-JEE-kee-da, the middle syllable ji gets a touch more length than the rest, keep the k crisp.

Writing and usage

正直だ is written using kanji. It's a adjective, 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

彼女は正直に答えた。

kanojo ha shoujiki ni kotae ta.

She gave an honest answer.

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How to remember 正直だ

Shoujiki sounds like 'show, Jiki', imagine Jiki always showing you the honest, unfiltered truth about everything.

Related words

Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.

Questions about 正直だ

How do you pronounce 正直だ?

Pronounce shoh-JEE-kee-da, the middle syllable ji gets a touch more length than the rest, keep the k crisp.

Is 正直だ formal or casual?

正直だ 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 正直だ written in Japanese?

正直だ is written using kanji. Romanised, it reads as shoujiki da.

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.

"Honest" 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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