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情けない (なさけない) Japanese meaning | Kotomora
Common word JLPT N2 Freq. Frequency Top 10,000 Conjugation Meanings 1
i-adjective
miserable ; pitiful ; shameful ; pathetic
Expresses a strong feeling of disappointment, pity, or contempt toward a situation, oneself, or someone else. Can range from 'how pitiful' to 'how shameful/pathetic' depending on context.
His excuse was just too pathetic.
Written forms 情なさ けない Usage 86%
Standard kanji-kana mixed spelling; the most common written form.
なさけない Usage 7%
Kana spelling is sometimes used for emphasis or in casual writing.
情なさけ ない Usage 7%
情なさ け 無な い
rarely-used kanji form
Rarely used kanji form; 情けない is overwhelmingly preferred.
Kanji 情 feelings, emotion, passion 無 nothingness, none, ain't Similar words 哀あわ れ 哀れ is more about pity and compassion for someone's unfortunate state, while 情けない often carries a nuance of contempt or disappointment.
恥は ずかしい 恥ずかしい focuses on embarrassment or shame from a social perspective, whereas 情けない is more about internal disappointment or contempt toward the pitiful state itself.
Etymology Derived from 情け (なさけ, 'sympathy' or 'pity') + ない (negative adjective ending), literally meaning 'without pity' or 'unpitying'. The modern sense shifted to describe something so pitiful that it evokes a feeling of contempt or disappointment.
