Translation guide
The English word 'cheap' covers several distinct meanings: low price, poor quality, stingy behavior, and easy/undeserved gains. Japanese uses different words for each, and some English uses have no direct equivalent.
cheap (inexpensive)
cheap (poor quality)
cheap (stingy person)
Describing something that costs little money, in a neutral or positive sense.
The most common and neutral word for 'inexpensive'. Can be used for goods, services, and prices.
This store has cheap vegetables.
I'm looking for something cheaper.
Means 'bargain-priced' or 'specially low price'. Often used in advertisements and for travel deals.
I booked a cheap flight ticket.
Means 'reasonably priced' or 'affordable'. Has a positive, gentle nuance, often used in marketing.
We have a reasonably priced lunch set.
Slang for 'super cheap' or 'dirt cheap'. Common in bargain stores and casual speech.
That store is dirt cheap.
Describing something that is low in quality, often because it was inexpensive, with a negative connotation.
An adjective meaning 'cheap-looking' or 'tacky'. Implies poor quality or lack of refinement.
This bag looks cheap.
It's made of cheap material, isn't it?
A na-adjective meaning 'flimsy' or 'shoddy'. Often used for poorly made objects.
Cheap toys break easily.
Means 'crude' or 'shabby'. Can describe poor quality or careless treatment.
It was cheaply made furniture.
Describing a person who is unwilling to spend money, often in a negative way.
The most common word for 'stingy' or 'cheap' (of a person). Can be used as a na-adjective or noun.
He's cheap, so let's split the bill.
Don't be so cheap.
A formal, literary term for 'stingy' or 'miserly'. Rare in everyday speech.
He is known as a miserly old man.
A noun meaning 'miser' or 'money-grubber'. Strongly negative.
That miser won't donate a single yen.
Describing something achieved with little effort, or an unfair, contemptible action.
Means 'easy' or 'thoughtless'. Used for solutions or actions that are too simplistic or taken without proper consideration.
You shouldn't choose a cheap solution.
Means 'cowardly' or 'unfair'. Used for cheap shots or underhanded tactics.
That's a cheap trick.
Stop with the cheap shots.
Can also be used metaphorically for actions that seem tawdry or lacking in class, like a cheap trick.
Don't use cheap tricks.
Means 'half-baked' or 'superficial'. Can imply a cheap, shallow effort.
Don't challenge it with cheap knowledge.
Describing something showy but lacking class, often in appearance or behavior.
Saying 彼は安い (kare wa yasui) to mean 'He is cheap' (stingy) is incorrect. Use ケチな (kechi na) instead. 安い only applies to prices and things.
He is cheap (stingy).
安い (yasui) is neutral or positive ('inexpensive'), while 安っぽい (yasuppoi) is negative ('cheap-looking, tacky'). Be careful not to insult something you meant to call affordable.
This clothing is cheap (inexpensive), but it doesn't look cheap.