How do you say "narrow" in Japanese?

In Japanese, "narrow" is 狭い (Semai). It is a adjective pronounced "seh-mah-ee".

Listen to the pronunciation:

Pronunciation

狭い is written in kanji and hiragana. Romanised as Semai, it sounds roughly like "seh-mah-ee" to an English ear.

Example sentence

この道はとても狭いです。

Kono michi wa totemo semai desu.

This road is very narrow.

Usage notes

Semai (狭い) is an i-adjective meaning narrow or small in area. It is used for roads, rooms, and spaces. The opposite is hiroi (wide or spacious).

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Questions about 狭い

How do you pronounce 狭い?

狭い is romanised as Semai. Say it roughly like "seh-mah-ee" in English. Each Japanese syllable has even weight, so keep the rhythm steady.

Is 狭い formal or casual?

狭い is an i-adjective. The form shown is the plain form, which works in casual speech. To make it polite, add desu at the end of the sentence. The word itself does not change.

How is 狭い written in Japanese?

狭い is written using kanji and hiragana. Kanji characters carry the core meaning; any hiragana or katakana that follow show grammatical endings.

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.