Translation guide
The quality of being extremely unwilling to spend money, often to the point of hoarding it. In Japanese, this concept is expressed through nouns, adjectives, and descriptive phrases that emphasize stinginess or extreme frugality.
Describing a person's character as stingy or miserly in a general sense.
The most common and versatile word for stinginess or a miser. Can be used as a noun or na-adjective.
Emphasizing an extreme or pathological level of miserliness.
Describing actions that demonstrate miserliness, such as being tight-fisted or reluctant to spend.
Literally 'detailed about money', meaning someone is stingy or counts every penny.
彼女はお金に細かくて、いつも割り勘にする。
She's stingy with money and always splits the bill.
Direct translations like 'miserliness' as a noun are rarely used in casual conversation. Instead, describe the behavior or use adjectives like けち.
けち (stingy) has a negative connotation, while 節約 (saving money) is positive and implies wise frugality. Be careful not to confuse them.
彼は節約家だが、けちではない。
He is thrifty, but not stingy.
彼は本当にけちだ。
He is really stingy.
A more formal or literary term for miserliness or stinginess.
彼の吝嗇ぶりは有名だ。
His miserliness is famous.
A derogatory term for a miser, literally 'money-guarding slave'. Stronger and more insulting than けち.
あの老人は守銭奴だ。
That old man is a miser.
A colloquial and slightly childish term for a stingy person, similar to 'cheapskate'.
彼はけちん坊だから、絶対におごらない。
He's such a cheapskate, he'll never treat you.
A proverb meaning 'penny wise, pound foolish', describing someone so miserly they end up losing more.
安物を買ってすぐ壊れた。一文惜しみの百失いだ。
I bought a cheap item and it broke right away. Penny wise, pound foolish.
Verb meaning to be reluctant to spend or give out money; to grudge spending.
彼は寄付を出し惜しみしている。
He is grudging about making donations.
To hoard money, emphasizing the act of accumulating and not spending.
彼は金を貯め込むだけで、使おうとしない。
He just hoards money and never tries to spend it.