How to say "distracted" in Japanese

• 散漫さんまんCommon
  na-adjective, nounCovers the sense of attention or content that is scattered and unfocused — a wandering mind, a rambling lecture or conversation. The common word for this loose, unfocused kind of 'distracted'.
  寝不足ねぶそくだと注意ちゅういが散漫さんまんになりがちです。↗

  When you lack sleep, you are apt to be careless.
• そぞろ
  na-adjectiveA restless, on-edge state in which you cannot concentrate; less common, and usually written in kana alone. Use when nervousness keeps your mind from settling rather than for plain absent-mindedness.
• 心ここにあらずこころここにあらず
  expressionAn idiom meaning your body is here but your mind is elsewhere. Use for the daydreaming, spacing-out sense, or for talk that goes in one ear and out the other.
  心こころここにあらず、ですね。↗

  Your mind is not occupied with your own affairs.
• 気が漫ろきがそぞろ
  expressionA set phrase meaning your mind is preoccupied and drifts to other things; less common than 散漫. Use when thoughts of something else pull your attention away from what you are doing.
• 気もそぞろきもそぞろ
  expressionDescribes feeling restless, nervous or fidgety, too unsettled to concentrate. Suits the keyed-up sense of 'distracted' — nerves rather than wandering thoughts — and is less common than 散漫.

散漫 is the common choice for scattered, unfocused attention or talk; 「そぞろ」, 「気が漫ろ」 and 「気もそぞろ」 cover restless, preoccupied states, and the idiom 「心ここにあらず」 means present in body but absent in mind.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

• 散漫さんまんvague
• そぞろrestless
• 心ここにあらずこころここにあらずthere in body, but not in spirit
• 気が漫ろきがそぞろpreoccupied
• 気もそぞろきもそぞろfeeling restless