How to say 'Great' or 'Respectable' in Japanese | 偉い

Wondering how to say 'Great' or 'Respectable' in Japanese? You're in the right place!

The Japanese word for Great or Respectable is 'Erai', written as 偉い in Japanese.'Great' or 'Respectable' in hiragana is えらい.

word

偉い

Meaning

Great, Respectable

Reading

えらい

erai

Kanji

偉Great, Admirable

Explanation

The Japanese adjective '偉い (えらい)' has two primary meanings. The first is 'great', often used to describe someone who has achieved something significant or holds a high status. For example: he is a great person「彼は偉い人だ」(かれはえらいひとだ). The second meaning is 'respectable', used to describe someone who is admirable or deserving of respect. For example: she is a respectable teacher「彼女は偉い先生だ」(かのじょはえらいせんせいだ). It can also be used sarcastically or humorously to describe someone who has done something unexpected or over-the-top. For example: you really went and did that? You're something else!「本当にやったの？偉いね！」(ほんとうにやったの？えらいね！).

Part Of Speech

adjective

Kanji JLPT

Kanji Grade

Frequency

2707

Composition

kanji-hiragana

Handwriting

This word is an i-adjective. To learn how it transforms in different tenses and forms, explore all its conjugations.

Kanji in the Word 偉い

This word contains 1 kanji character:

kanji

偉

Meaning

Great, Admirable

Hiragana in the Word 偉い

This word contains 1 Hiragana character :

hiragana

い

Reading

Words Related to 偉い Through the Kanji 偉

This Word contains the Kanji 偉 as well.

word

偉大

Meaning

Great

Learn the Word 偉い

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What does 'Erai' (偉い) mean?

'Erai' means 'Great' or 'Respectable' .

To help you master this word, here's an interactive lesson where you'll practice its readings and meanings.