水臭い・水くさい|みずくさいmizukusai[4]nakadaka (mid-high)
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Which spelling to use
水臭い水臭い is the most common written form. Use it when you want to express that someone is stand-offish, distant, not frank, or reserved.
水くさい水くさい is a less common written variant with the same meaning: stand-offish, distant, not frank, or reserved. You may encounter it, but 水臭い is the better first choice.
Definitions
- i-adjectivestand-offish; distant; not frank; reservedそう水くさくするな。↗Don't be so reserved.
- i-adjectivewatery (alcohol, coffee, etc.)
Conjugation
| Plain form | 水臭い（みずくさい） |
|---|---|
| Polite (desu) | 水臭いです（みずくさいです） |
| Negative (kunai) | 水臭くない（みずくさくない） |
| polite (ku arimasen) | 水臭くありません（みずくさくありません） |
| Past (katta) | 水臭かった（みずくさかった） |
| Past negative (kunakatta) | 水臭くなかった（みずくさくなかった） |
| Te form (kute) | 水臭くて（みずくさくて） |
| Adverbial (ku) | 水臭く（みずくさく） |
| Conditional (kereba) | 水臭ければ（みずくさければ） |
| kattara | 水臭かったら（みずくさかったら） |
Common forms generated by rule; see the senses for honorific or irregular usage.
Synonyms & antonyms
- RelatedよそよそしいNeutralDescribes a cold, distant manner that makes someone seem like a stranger. 「水臭い」 is mostly a complaint among acquaintances that they are being treated as outsiders.
- Related他人行儀たにんぎょうぎNeutralA four-character idiom for acting politely with a friend as if they were a stranger, as in 「他人行儀はやめて」; it stresses excessive formality.
- Antonym親しいしたしいNeutralMeans close or intimate, as in 「親しい友人」; it is the opposite of 「水臭い」 in its sense of treating someone as an outsider.
- Antonym馴れ馴れしいなれなれしいNeutralMeans overly familiar and lacking a sense of propriety; it is derogatory and the exact opposite of being too standoffish.
- Antonym近しいちかしいNeutralRead ちかしい and also written 「親しい」; it means close and familiar, the opposite of 「水臭い」 in its sense of being distant with someone.
Use 「水臭い」 to complain that an acquaintance is treating you as an outsider and not telling you things, as in 「水臭いじゃないか、相談してくれよ」. For a cold, distant manner say 「よそよそしい」; for excessive politeness 「他人行儀」. Antonyms: 「親しい」, 「近しい」, 「馴れ馴れしい」.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese definitions
- よそよそしい。
- 水っぽい。
Kanji in this word
English equivalents
See also
