めでたい · i-adjective
| Form | Positive | Negative |
|---|---|---|
| Dictionary | めでたい | めでたくない |
| Polite | めでたいです | めでたくないですalso めでたくありません |
| Past polite | めでたかったです | めでたくなかったですalso めでたくありませんでした |
| Past | めでたかった | めでたくなかった |
| Te-form | めでたくて | めでたくなくて |
| Adverbial | めでたく | |
| Conditional | めでたければ | めでたくなければ |
| Tara conditional | めでたかったら | めでたくなかったら |
Used for occasions, events, or news that are joyful and worth celebrating. Often appears in set phrases like めでたい席 or めでたい知らせ.
See also: おめでたい
今日は本当にめでたい日だ。
Today is truly a happy day.
お二人の結婚はめでたい限りです。
Your marriage is nothing but joyous.
Describes a person who is overly optimistic, gullible, or lacking in worldly wisdom. Often used with a slightly critical or teasing tone.
See also: おめでたい
彼はいつも人をすぐ信じるめでたい奴だ。
He's a naive guy who always trusts people right away.
My son's marriage is joyous news.
He's a naive guy who always trusts people too much.
He happily passed the university entrance exam.
幸せ describes personal happiness or well-being, whereas めでたい is used for celebratory events, news, or occasions rather than one's inner state.
不吉 means ominous or inauspicious, the opposite of めでたい's sense of being joyous and auspicious.
賢い means clever or wise, the opposite of めでたい's second sense of being naive or gullible.
おめでたい adds the polite prefix お to めでたい, making it a softer, more formal (or teasingly ironic) way of saying the same thing.
Rare ateji variant; not commonly encountered.
Extremely rare kanji form; included for search coverage only.