also: けち
noun, na-adjective
Describes a person who is unwilling to spend money or share resources; can be used as a noun (a miser) or an adjective (stingy).
彼は本当にケチで、一度もおごってくれたことがない。
He's really stingy and has never treated me once.
あのケチがまた割り勘を細かく計算している。
That cheapskate is calculating the split bill down to the last yen again.
na-adjective, noun
shabby; cheap-looking; poor quality
Used for things that look cheap, worn out, or of low quality; often implies a lack of care or investment.
このスーツはケチに見えるけど、実は高いんだ。
This suit looks cheap, but it's actually expensive.
ケチなホテルに泊まったら、部屋がカビ臭かった。
I stayed at a shabby hotel and the room smelled musty.
noun, na-adjective
petty; narrow-minded; small-minded
Describes a person's character or attitude as mean-spirited, ungenerous in spirit, or fixated on trivial matters.
そんなケチな考え方じゃ、友達を失うよ。
With such a petty way of thinking, you'll lose your friends.
彼のケチな態度にはもう我慢できない。
I can't stand his small-minded attitude anymore.
noun
Used in set phrases like ケチがつく (to be jinxed) or ケチをつける (to find fault, to put a jinx on something).
せっかくの計画にケチがついてしまった。
A jinx was put on our carefully made plans.
彼はいつも人の仕事にケチをつける。
He always finds fault with other people's work.
The origin is uncertain; possibly derived from the mimetic word けちけち (stingy) or related to けち (a small amount). The kanji form 吝嗇 is a borrowing from Chinese, but the word itself is considered a native Japanese term.