How do you say "soft" in Japanese?

In Japanese, "soft" is 柔らかい (Yawarakai). It is a adjective pronounced "yah-wah-rah-kah-ee".

Listen to the pronunciation:

Pronunciation

柔らかい is written in kanji and hiragana. Romanised as Yawarakai, it sounds roughly like "yah-wah-rah-kah-ee" to an English ear.

Example sentence

このベッドはとても柔らかいです。

Kono beddo wa totemo yawarakai desu.

This bed is very soft.

Usage notes

Yawarakai (柔らかい) is an i-adjective meaning soft or gentle. It is used for textures, foods, light, and personalities. A gentle person can be described as yawarakai hito, and soft bread as yawarakai pan.

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Questions about 柔らかい

How do you pronounce 柔らかい?

柔らかい is romanised as Yawarakai. Say it roughly like "yah-wah-rah-kah-ee" in English. Each Japanese syllable has even weight, so keep the rhythm steady.

Is 柔らかい formal or casual?

柔らかい 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 柔らかい written in Japanese?

柔らかい 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.