Translation guide
This guide covers how to express feeling depressed in Japanese, from clinical depression to everyday sadness and low mood.
To describe a medically significant state of depression, often long-term and requiring treatment.
The standard term for clinical depression. Used in medical and everyday contexts.
彼はうつ病と診断された。
He was diagnosed with depression.
Refers to a depressive state, often used in medical or psychological contexts.
彼女はうつ状態が続いている。
She has been in a depressive state for a while.
To express a temporary low mood, sadness, or feeling blue.
The most common verb for feeling down or depressed. Intransitive.
試験に落ちて落ち込んでいる。
I'm feeling down because I failed the exam.
Literally 'mood falls', a common way to say one feels depressed.
雨の日は気分が落ち込む。
I feel depressed on rainy days.
A noun or na-adjective meaning melancholy or gloom. Slightly literary.
Literally 'to sink', used metaphorically for feeling depressed. Often in the form 気持ちが沈む.
To express a heavy, gloomy emotional state, often with a nuance of lingering sadness.
Literally 'spirit is heavy', a very common expression for feeling depressed or burdened.
明日の会議を考えると気が重い。
Thinking about tomorrow's meeting makes me feel depressed.
Heart sinks; a poetic way to express deep sadness or depression.
その知らせを聞いて心が沈んだ。
My heart sank when I heard the news.
To describe a state of low energy or apathy often associated with depression.
Literally 'motivation doesn't come out', a common way to say you feel unmotivated or depressed.
最近何もやる気が出ない。
Lately I don't feel like doing anything.
Apathy or lethargy; a noun or na-adjective often used in psychological contexts.
無気力な状態が続いている。
I've been in a state of apathy.
To refer to an economic downturn or recession.
The standard term for economic recession or depression.
世界は大不況に陥った。
The world fell into a great depression.
Panic or economic crisis; used for severe depressions like the Great Depression.
Saying '私は落ち込んでいる' is grammatically correct but can sound unnatural because Japanese often omits the subject. Instead, use '落ち込んでいる' or '気分が落ち込んでいる'.
落ち込んでいる。
I'm depressed.
落ち込む is the everyday word for feeling down, while 憂鬱 implies a deeper, more lingering gloom and is often used in written or formal contexts.
憂鬱な気分だ。
I'm in a gloomy mood.
His words made me feel depressed.
世界恐慌は1929年に始まった。
The Great Depression began in 1929.