Explore Words Kanji Grammar Guides

Copyright © 2026 Kotomora. All Rights Reserved.

Get the Kotomora apps for iOS and Android.

Explore Words Kanji Grammar Guides About Support Privacy

Copyright © 2026 Kotomora. All Rights Reserved.

すれ違い (すれちがい) Japanese meaning | Kotomora

すれ違ちがい

す

れ

ち

が

い

JLPTN1›Freq.FrequencyTop 20,000

Meanings

1

passing each other

Physical act of two people or things moving past each other, often in opposite directions.

狭せまい道みちですれ違ちがいが難むずかしい。

It's hard to pass each other on the narrow road.

2

missing each other; failing to meet

When two people intend to meet but miss each other due to timing or location; often used with ～になる.

駅えきで彼かれとすれ違ちがいになって会あえなかった。
I missed him at the station and couldn't meet him.

3

cross purposes; discrepancy; disagreement

Figurative use: when people's intentions, opinions, or communications fail to align; often implies a misunderstanding or mismatch.

話はなしがすれ違ちがいになって、お互たがいに誤ご解かいした。
Our conversation got crossed and we misunderstood each other.

Usage patterns

〈人ひと〉とすれ違ちがいになるto miss meeting someone
駅えきで友とも達だちとすれ違ちがいになってしまった。
I ended up missing my friend at the station.
気き持もちのすれ違ちがいa gap in feelings between people
二人ふたりの間あいだには気き持もちのすれ違ちがいがあった。
There was a rift in feelings between the two of them.
すれ違ちがいが生しょうじるfor a disconnect or discrepancy to arise
連れん絡らく不ぶ足そくからすれ違ちがいが生しょうじた。
A disconnect arose from a lack of communication.
すれ違ちがいを解かい消しょうするto resolve a misalignment or rift
話はなし合あってすれ違ちがいを解かい消しょうした。
We talked it out and resolved our misunderstanding.

Expressions

すれ違ちがいざまwhile passing each other

Kanji

違difference, differ
擦grate, rub, scratch

Related words

行いき違ちがいN1sense 3
行き違い often refers to a mix-up like crossing letters in the mail or a resulting misunderstanding, while すれ違い emphasizes the act of two people or intentions physically or figuratively passing without meeting.
食くい違ちがいN1sense 3
食い違い points to a logical or factual inconsistency between statements or accounts, whereas すれ違い points to an emotional or timing mismatch between people.
誤ご解かいN3sense 3
誤解 means misunderstanding something incorrectly, while すれ違い describes intentions or feelings simply failing to align, without necessarily involving a wrong belief.
ニアミス
すれ違い describes people narrowly missing or passing each other (often figuratively, as in a misunderstanding), while ニアミス in this sense specifically means failing to meet by a small margin of time or place.

Opposites

出で会あいN3sense 2
出会い means successfully meeting someone, the opposite of すれ違い's sense of failing to meet due to timing or location.
一いっ致ちN3sense 3
一致 means opinions or feelings matching perfectly, the opposite of すれ違い's sense of a mismatch or falling out of sync.

Counted with

回かいN4
The neutral counter for occurrences: how many times something happens.
度たび
Counts occasions (times), mostly in set or literary phrases (この度, 幾度).

Written forms

すれ違ちがいUsage97%
Standard kanji-kana mixed spelling; the most common written form.
擦すれ違ちがいUsage3%
Full kanji spelling; less common but still encountered.

Etymology

Compound of the verb 擦れ違う (すれちがう, 'to pass each other') in its continuative form (連用形) 擦れ違い, used as a noun. The verb itself is composed of 擦れる (すれる, 'to rub, to pass') and 違う (ちがう, 'to differ, to go wrong').