形容詞（けいようし、keiyoushi）
- adjective

The Japanese word 形容詞 けいようし means "adjective" in English. It's a part of speech that describes nouns or pronouns, providing information about their qualities, characteristics, or states. Like English adjectives, 形容詞 modify nouns, adding detail and clarity to sentences. Japanese adjectives have unique characteristics, especially regarding conjugation and usage. Japanese adjectives can be broadly categorized into two main types: い形容詞 (i-adjectives) and な形容詞 (na-adjectives). This classification affects how they conjugate and interact with other words in a sentence.

⚫︎ あの車は速い。 Translation: That car is fast. ⚫︎ きれいな花 Translation: Beautiful flower ⚫︎ 彼は静かな人です。 Translation: He is a quiet person.

⚫︎ Use 形容詞 to describe a noun. They typically come before the noun they modify in Japanese, although there are exceptions. ⚫︎ Pay attention to the type of 形容詞 (い形容詞 or な形容詞) as it affects how you conjugate it. ⚫︎ い形容詞 directly modify the noun. For example, 赤い車(red car). ⚫︎ な形容詞 require the particle な before the noun: きれいな花(beautiful flower). The particle な changes the characteristics of the adjective, it must be used. ⚫︎ Japanese adjectives can also function as predicates, appearing at the end of a sentence to express a state or quality. For example: このケーキはおいしいです。(This cake is delicious.)

⚫︎ The word is written as 形容詞 in Kanji. ⚫︎ The reading (pronunciation) is けいようし in Hiragana. ⚫︎ There are no other common ways to write this word. ⚫︎ No variations in okurigana.

There are no direct synonyms for the word 形容詞 itself, as it is a term for a part of speech. However, the meaning is related to the words describing certain objects.

There are no direct antonyms for the word 形容詞 itself, as it is a term for a part of speech. However, you can consider antonyms for specific adjectives. For example: ⚫︎ 速い (fast) vs. 遅い (slow) ⚫︎ 高い (expensive) vs. 安い (cheap)

このレストランは美味しい料理を提供しています。 ・Translation: This restaurant serves delicious food. ・Explanation: 美味しい is an い形容詞 describing the quality of the food. It is modifying the word 料理 (ryouri - food).

彼女は親切な人です。 ・Translation: She is a kind person. ・Explanation: 親切な is a な形容詞 describing her personality. The particle な connects the adjective to the noun 人 (hito - person).

The word 形容詞 is a compound word formed from the following kanji: ⚫︎ 形 (kei) - "shape," "form," or "appearance." ⚫︎ 容 (you) - "appearance," "feature," or "content." ⚫︎ 詞 (shi) - "word" or "term." Therefore, the word 形容詞 literally means "words that describe appearance or form," accurately reflecting its function in the language.