Some people brag because they think English is the only language that has the word saudade. And really if we take most of the translations of saudade into other languages we will find more words that mean absence, nostalgia or miss. Even so, this word does not exist only in English, it originated from Latin and is found in several Romance languages but sometimes with other meanings.
It is not just Portuguese that has some uniqueness, Japanese is full of verbs, expressions and words that cannot be literally translated into other languages, but unfortunately there is not a single word to say “Sentir Missor ou saudade”.
If there is literally no word to indicate the feeling of homesickness in other languages, how can you say you miss someone in Japanese? There are several ways to express this in Japanese, in this article we will see some of them.
Japanese is quite complete in terms of expressing feelings, so much so that there are several ways to say that you love or like something or someone. The same thing happens when trying to express the feeling of saudade or missing someone. Japanese often uses the combination of verbs to form others, and many verbs have different meanings, which can even be confusing.
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恋しい - Koishii
This is an expression that demonstrates longing, desire, and a feeling of missing someone, but it should be used with care, since the kanji 恋 means love and passion. It might seem more common to use 恋しい with your girlfriend or wife. However, it is normal to use koishii with other people you haven't seen in a long time, or even with food and objects, but it's not common, as there are other words for that. Koishii can indicate that you have an intimate relationship or something like that.
Examples:
- 私は恋しい - watashi wa koishii - I miss you;
- 私はあなたが恋しい - watashi wa anata ga koishii - I miss you;
- あなたが恋しい - anata ga koishii - I miss you;
- 私もあなたが恋しいです - watashi mo anata ga koishii desu - I miss you too;
- アメリカのピザが恋しいな~ - amerika no piza ga koishiina - I miss American pizza;
会いたい - Aitai
This may be the most common expression to say that you miss someone. However, its literal translation is 'I want to meet you' or 'I want to see you'. One thing I noticed is that ai (会い) also means love, but when written with kanji 愛, so even being a homonym, it's as if you were expressing a feeling of love with the word saudade by saying aitai.
It is easy to notice that many Japanese words and kanji with the same pronunciation have similar or related meanings and roots. Of course, there is no direct reference in the Japanese language regarding these 2 words.
- 久美子さんにすっごく会いたいよ。
- Kumiko-san ni suggoku aitaiyo;
- I really want to see you Kumiko.
- I miss you so much Kumiko;
- すっごく -> muito, imensamente, terrível;
寂しい - sabishii / samishii
The word 寂しい - sabishii literally means "alone, lonely, desolate," but the Japanese often use it to indicate that they are alone because they miss someone or feel their absence. In reality, it is easier to find the word sabishii in sentences expressing I miss you or "sinto sua falta" than aitai.
The word sabishii is also written with the ideogram 淋 (淋しい), in this case, you are saying that your loneliness is more severe. So if you just want to say you miss someone, use the kanji 寂.
- 彼女は彼がいなくて寂しい。
- Kanojo wa kare ga inakute sabishii;
- She misses him;
- 君がいなくて寂しいよ。
- Kimi ga inakute sabishī yo;
- I miss you;
- I miss you;
- あなたが日本を離れたら、私たちはとてもさびしく思うでしょう。
- If you leave Japan, we will miss you very much;
- We will miss you very much if you leave Japan;
懐かしい - Natsukashii
The expression natsukashii can be literally translated as something dear, nostalgic, desired, and forgotten. It is often used to say that one feels nostalgic for something, for a time in the past, old times, a trip, or something of the sort. However, it is also used to express missing a person, see example sentences below:
- この歌を聞いたら、あなたについて思って、懐かしむんだ。
- When I listen to this song, I think of you and feel nostalgic;
- When I hear this song, I think of you and I miss you;
- 小学校の先生達のことが懐かしい。
- I miss the elementary school teachers;
- I miss my elementary school teachers;
- Miss my elementary school teachers;
There must still be other expressions and words to demonstrate the feeling of missing or loss, like defeat in a サッカーの試合, and there were also several examples of use that were missed. I hope this small article serves to help you understand how to express that you miss someone or something.
Also read: Death Parede - An Anime About Gambling