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.
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.
この店は野菜が安い。
This store has cheap vegetables.
もっと安いのを探しています。
I'm looking for something cheaper.
Means 'bargain-priced' or 'specially low price'. Often used in advertisements and for travel deals.
格安航空券を予約した。
I booked a cheap flight ticket.
Means 'reasonably priced' or 'affordable'. Has a positive, gentle nuance, often used in marketing.
お手頃な価格のランチセットがあります。
We have a reasonably priced lunch set.
Slang for 'super cheap' or 'dirt cheap'. Common in bargain stores and casual speech.
あの店は激安だよ。
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.
このバッグは安っぽく見える。
This bag looks cheap.
安っぽい素材だね。
It's made of cheap material, isn't it?
A na-adjective meaning 'flimsy' or 'shoddy'. Often used for poorly made objects.
ちゃちなおもちゃはすぐ壊れる。
Cheap toys break easily.
Means 'crude' or 'shabby'. Can describe poor quality or careless treatment.
粗末な作りの家具だった。
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.
彼はケチだから、割り勘にしよう。
He's cheap, so let's split the bill.
そんなケチなこと言わないで。
Don't be so cheap.
A formal, literary term for 'stingy' or 'miserly'. Rare in everyday speech.
彼は吝嗇な老人として知られている。
He is known as a miserly old man.
A noun meaning 'miser' or 'money-grubber'. Strongly negative.
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.
安易な解決策を選ぶべきではない。
You shouldn't choose a cheap solution.
Means 'cowardly' or 'unfair'. Used for cheap shots or underhanded tactics.
それは卑怯な手だ。
That's a cheap trick.
卑怯な攻撃はやめろ。
Stop with the cheap shots.
Can also be used metaphorically for actions that seem tawdry or lacking in class, like a cheap trick.
Means 'half-baked' or 'superficial'. Can imply a cheap, shallow effort.
生半可な知識で挑戦するな。
Don't challenge it with cheap knowledge.
Describing something showy but lacking class, often in appearance or behavior.
Means 'vulgar', 'coarse', or 'tasteless'. Used for behavior, jokes, or style.
あの冗談は下品だった。
That joke was cheap.
Again, 'cheap-looking' can extend to tasteless or gaudy style.
安っぽい装飾が嫌いだ。
I hate cheap decorations.
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.
彼はケチだ。
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.
この服は安いけど、安っぽくない。
This clothing is cheap (inexpensive), but it doesn't look cheap.
あの守銭奴は一円も寄付しない。
That miser won't donate a single yen.
安っぽい手を使うな。
Don't use cheap tricks.