Translation guide
The English word 'liabilities' can refer to financial debts or obligations, or to people or things that cause problems or disadvantages. This guide covers both meanings and how to express them naturally in Japanese.
The speaker wants to refer to money owed or financial obligations, often in a business or accounting context.
The standard accounting term for liabilities, debts, or obligations. Used in formal and business contexts.
The speaker wants to describe someone or something that is a burden, hindrance, or source of trouble.
Do not directly translate 'liabilities' as 責任 (responsibility) or 不利 (disadvantage) when you mean a burden or hindrance. Use the expressions above instead.
会社の負債は増え続けている。
The company's liabilities keep increasing.
We will make a plan to repay the liabilities.
Refers specifically to debts or obligations, often legal or contractual. Slightly more formal than 負債.
We demand the fulfillment of the obligations.
Common word for debt or borrowing, often used in personal finance. Less formal than 負債.
He is drowning in debt.
Literally 'baggage', used figuratively to mean a burden or liability. Common in casual and spoken Japanese.
He is a liability to the team.
Means a hindrance or someone who slows you down. Often used for a person who is a burden in a group activity.
Beginners can be a liability.
A troublesome person, a burden. Slightly old-fashioned but still used.
He is treated as a liability by his family.
Idiom meaning 'to hold someone back' or 'to be a drag on someone'. Describes the action of being a liability.
His mistakes were a liability for the team.
Means burden or load. Can be used for financial or non-financial liabilities, but is more abstract.
The project became a liability for the company.