めんどくさい・面倒くさい・面倒臭いmendokusai
めんどうくさいmendoukusai[6]nakadaka (mid-high)
This browser can't play pronunciations (needs Safari 18.4 or later, or Chrome / Edge / Firefox).
Which spelling to use
面倒くさい面倒くさい is the most common of the four listed spellings and the recommended choice for beginners; it does not indicate a different meaning from the variants, and the word is usually written in kana alone.
面倒臭い面倒臭い is less common than 面倒くさい and has no separate meaning or nuance; it appears as an alternative kanji-kana spelling, not the beginner default.
Definitions
- i-adjectivebothersome; tiresome; bother to do
Conjugation
| Plain form | めんどくさい |
|---|---|
| Polite (desu) | めんどくさいです |
| Negative (kunai) | めんどくさくない |
| polite (ku arimasen) | めんどくさくありません |
| Past (katta) | めんどくさかった |
| Past negative (kunakatta) | めんどくさくなかった |
| Te form (kute) | めんどくさくて |
| Adverbial (ku) | めんどくさく |
| Conditional (kereba) | めんどくさければ |
| kattara | めんどくさかったら |
Common forms generated by rule; see the senses for honorific or irregular usage.
Synonyms & antonyms
- Synonym面倒めんどうNeutralA hassle or burden (「面倒な手続き」), and also looking after someone (「面倒を見る」); 「面倒くさい」 stresses being put off because it's a hassle.
- Synonym厄介やっかいNeutralTricky and hard to deal with (「厄介な問題」); also used for living under someone's care.
- Synonym煩わしいわずらわしいNeutralAnnoying and fiddly (「煩わしい人間関係」); leans toward written/formal prose.
- SynonymしんどいCasualColloquial; originally a western (Kansai etc.) dialect, now used nationwide. Means tiring and draining (「しんどい仕事」), stressing physical and mental fatigue.
- Antonym簡単かんたんNeutralSimple and easy; the direct opposite of 「面倒くさい」.
- Antonym手軽てがるNeutralEasy and hassle-free, done with little effort; the opposite of 「面倒くさい」.
Use 「面倒くさい」 when you can't be bothered with something (「めんどくさいなあ」); colloquially 「めんどい」. For a task that is itself a hassle say 「面倒」, and for something hard to deal with 「厄介」. The opposites are 「簡単」 and 「手軽」.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese definitions
