改善 (かいぜん, kaizen) Japanese meaning: improvement | Kotomora

改かい善ぜん

か

い

ぜ

ん

Common wordJLPTN3Freq.FrequencyTop 2,000

改善する · noun or participle which takes 'suru'

Form	Positive	Negative
Dictionary	改かい善ぜんする	改かい善ぜんしない
Polite	改かい善ぜんします	改かい善ぜんしません
Past polite	改かい善ぜんしました	改かい善ぜんしませんでした
Past	改かい善ぜんした	改かい善ぜんしなかった
Te-form	改かい善ぜんして	改かい善ぜんしないで
Desire	改かい善ぜんしたい	改かい善ぜんしたくない
Potential	改かい善ぜんできる	改かい善ぜんできない
Passive	改かい善ぜんされる	改かい善ぜんされない
Causative	改かい善ぜんさせる	改かい善ぜんさせない
Causative passive	改かい善ぜんさせられる	改かい善ぜんさせられない
Volitional	改かい善ぜんしよう
Polite volitional	改かい善ぜんしましょう
Imperative	改かい善ぜんしろ	改かい善ぜんするな
Conditional	改かい善ぜんすれば	改かい善ぜんしなければ
Tara conditional	改かい善ぜんしたら	改かい善ぜんしなかったら

Meanings

noun, noun or participle which takes 'suru', transitive verb, intransitive verb

improvement; betterment

General term for making something better, applicable to processes, conditions, skills, etc. Used both as a noun and with する.

業ぎょう務むプロセスの改かい善ぜんに取とり組く

Kanji

改reformation, change, modify
善virtuous, good, goodness

Transitive / intransitive

改善 is used both transitively and intransitively: 会社は制度を改善した (the company improved the system, transitive) and 状況が改善した (the situation improved, intransitive).

Related words· 8

改かい良りょうN2sense 1
改善 covers general or abstract improvement, while 改良 focuses on concrete, technical upgrades to a product or method.
向こう上じょうN2sense 1
改善 means fixing or bettering a flawed current state, whereas 向上 means raising an already-existing level, such as skill or quality.
好こう転てんN1sense 1
好転 describes a situation naturally turning for the better, while 改善 usually implies a deliberate effort to make something better.
改かい革かくN2
改革 refers to fundamental, structural change, while 改善 refers to incremental improvement of existing conditions.

Show 4 more

改あらたまるN1
改善する is a transitive, action-focused word meaning 'to improve something', while 改まる is intransitive and describes a system or habit becoming better on its own.
手てを入いれるN1
改善する focuses on making something better overall (an improvement), while 手を入れる suggests small, localized corrections rather than a broad upgrade.
整せい備びN2
改善 refers to making something better in general quality, while 整備 specifically means preparing or organizing systems, laws, or facilities for use.

Opposites

悪あっ化かN2sense 1
悪化 means a situation getting worse, the direct opposite of 改善, which means it getting better.
こじらせるN1
改善する means 'to improve', the opposite of 拗らせる, which means to make a situation worse.
改かい悪あくN1
改悪 refers to a change that makes something worse, while 改善 refers to a change that makes something better.

Don't confuse with

改かい革かくN2sense 1
改革 means structural reform or overhaul of a system, while 改善 means making incremental improvements without necessarily changing the system itself.
改かいざん
改ざん and 改善 sound similar and share the kanji 改, but 改善 means a positive improvement while 改ざん means dishonest tampering.
改かい選せん
改善 shares the kanji 改 and looks similar in writing, but it is read かいぜん and means 'improvement,' not 'term-end election' like 改選.

Word family· 7

改かい善ぜん点てん
improvement points; areas that have been improved · points needing improvement; problem areas
改かい善ぜん策さく
improvement plan; reform measures; remedial measures
体たい質しつ改かい善ぜん
improvement of one's constitution; reformation
待たい遇

Written forms

改かい善ぜんUsage100%
Standard kanji form for general improvement.
カイゼンUsage<1%
Katakana spelling commonly used for the business philosophy sense.

Etymology

Compound of 改 (kai, 'reform, change') and 善 (zen, 'good, virtuous'). The business philosophy sense is a modern extension of the general meaning.

Meanings

Usage patterns