How do you say "ugly" in Japanese?

醜い

Minikui

Adjective Kanji

In Japanese, "ugly" is 醜い (Minikui).

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Pronunciation

醜い is written using kanji. Romanised as Minikui, it sounds roughly like "mee-nee-koo-ee" to an English ear.

Writing and usage

Minikui (醜い) is an i-adjective for ugly or unsightly appearance. Using it directly about a person is very rude, so apply it to objects, designs, or abstract ideas instead.

Example sentence

そのデザインは少し醜いです。

Sono dezain wa sukoshi minikui desu.

That design is a little ugly.

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How to remember 醜い

Minikui contains 醜 which uses a complex kanji suggesting shame or disgrace. The word itself looks complex, like something twisted.

Related words

Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.

See more Japanese adjectives.

Questions about 醜い

How do you pronounce 醜い?

醜い is romanised as Minikui. Say it roughly like "mee-nee-koo-ee" in English. Each Japanese syllable has even weight, so keep the rhythm steady.

Is 醜い formal or casual?

醜い 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 醜い written in Japanese?

醜い is written using kanji. Minikui (醜い) is an i-adjective for ugly or unsightly appearance.

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.

"Ugly" in other languages

Curated by Jack 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.

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