弱い（よわい、yowai）
- weak

The Japanese word 弱い (よわい) primarily means "weak," "feeble," or "fragile." It can describe physical weakness, lack of strength, or emotional vulnerability. It can also refer to a lack of ability or skill in a specific area. The meaning of 弱い can vary slightly depending on the context in which it's used.

⚫︎彼は体が弱いです。 Translation: He is physically weak. ⚫︎あのチームは守備が弱いです。 Translation: That team has a weak defense. ⚫︎私は数学に弱いです。 Translation: I am weak at math.

⚫︎You would use 弱い when describing someone's or something's lack of strength, resilience, or ability. ⚫︎It's common to use 弱い to describe physical condition, personality traits, skills, or even the strength of a team or organization. ⚫︎The usage of 弱い depends on the context and what you want to say.

⚫︎The word 弱い is typically written in hiragana as よわい. ⚫︎The kanji form is 弱い. ⚫︎There are no variations in the okurigana.

⚫︎ひょろい (hyoroi) - This implies being thin and weak, often physically. ⚫︎虚弱 (きょじゃく - kyojaku) - This is a more formal way to say "weak" in terms of health or constitution. ⚫︎脆い (もろい - moroi) - This suggests fragility or brittleness (easily broken).

⚫︎強い (つよい - tsuyoi) - Strong ⚫︎丈夫な (じょうぶな - joubuna) - Healthy/Sturdy

このパソコンは弱いので、すぐに壊れてしまうかもしれません。 ・Translation: This computer is weak, so it might break down soon. ・Explanation: This sentence describes the computer's lack of durability.

彼女は精神的に弱い時があるので、注意が必要です。 ・Translation: She sometimes feels emotionally weak, so we need to be careful. ・Explanation: This sentence describes emotional vulnerability.

The kanji 弱 itself means "weakness" or "frailty." The origin of 弱いis simply the kanji 弱 combined with the adjective ending い (-i) to form an adjective.