Translation guide
Describes something thoroughly soaked with liquid, often to the point of being heavy or unpleasant. In Japanese, different words are used depending on what is soaked and the nuance.
To describe something that is completely wet, often unpleasantly so.
The most common and versatile word for being soaked through, often from rain or water. Can be used for people, clothes, and objects.
My clothes got sodden from the rain.
I wrung out the sodden towel.
Similar to びしょ濡れ but often implies being soaked to the skin or completely drenched, sometimes with a nuance of being in a sorry state.
I got sodden from the sudden rain.
An adverb meaning 'soaking wet', often used with 濡れる or 湿る. Emphasizes the degree of wetness.
My shirt became sodden with sweat.
Describing earth that is saturated with water, often muddy.
Literally 'soaked in water', used for areas or things submerged or heavily saturated, like floors, fields, or rooms.
The field became sodden from the heavy rain.
Verb meaning 'to be muddy/sodden' (of ground). Often used for paths or fields after rain.
Onomatopoeic adverb describing something damp and soggy, often used for ground or wounds that are oozing moisture.
Describing food that has become soft and wet, losing its desirable texture.
Verb meaning 'to become soggy and swollen' from absorbing liquid, often used for noodles, bread, or cereal.
The ramen noodles became sodden in the soup.
Onomatopoeic adjective/na-adjective describing something wet and sticky, often unpleasantly so, like overcooked rice or wet bread.
Adverb describing something that has lost its crispness and become limp, often used for vegetables or fried food that has absorbed moisture.
Describing a person who is heavily drunk, often in a dull or stupefied way.
Verb meaning 'to drink oneself into a stupor', 'to be dead drunk'. Implies being sodden with alcohol.
He is sodden with drink every night.
Noun meaning 'being constantly drunk' or 'soaked in alcohol'. Describes a lifestyle of heavy drinking.
Both mean 'soaking wet', but ずぶ濡れ often implies being drenched to the skin or in a more pitiable state. びしょ濡れ is more general and can be used for objects as well as people.
When describing food that is unpleasantly soggy, do not use 濡れる (to get wet). Instead use words like ふやける or べちゃべちゃ to convey the loss of texture.
雨で道がぬかるんでいる。
The road is sodden from the rain.
The ground is sodden from the long rain.
このご飯はべちゃべちゃだ。
This rice is sodden.
天ぷらがしんなりしてしまった。
The tempura became sodden.
He leads a sodden life.