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Japanese vocabulary · Beginner
How do you say "poor" in Japanese?
貧しい
mazushii
In Japanese, "poor" is 貧しい (mazushii).
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Pronunciation
Ma-zu-shii, four syllables, the long 'shii' held for two beats at the end, giving it a drawn-out, weary sound.
Writing and usage
貧しい 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
貧しいけれど幸せだった。
mazushii keredo shiawase datta.
They were poor but happy.
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How to remember 貧しい
Mazushii sounds like 'ma, zoo, she' — she can't even afford a trip to the zoo, that's how poor she is.
Related words
- hard 硬い katai
- smooth 滑らかな nameraka na
- rough ざらざらした zarazarashita
- loud うるさい urusai
- thick 厚い atsui
- thin 薄い usui
- fresh 新鮮 shinsen
- rotten 腐った kusatsu ta
- ripe 熟した jukushi ta
Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.
Questions about 貧しい
How do you pronounce 貧しい?
Ma-zu-shii, four syllables, the long 'shii' held for two beats at the end, giving it a drawn-out, weary sound.
Is 貧しい formal or casual?
貧しい 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 貧しい written in Japanese?
貧しい is written using kanji. Romanised, it reads as mazushii.
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.
"Poor" 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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