The Meaning of yasashii [優しい] In Japanese

優しい
やさしい
Romaji: yasashii N5

What does 優しい mean?

Translation and Meaning

kind, gentle, nice

Definition

What does 優しい mean? It means being considerate, warm-hearted, and easy to approach; describes people, actions, or tones that show care and kindness.

Type

adjective (i-adjective)

Stroke Order

Meanings

  • core meaning: kind or gentle in character or behavior
  • nuances of warmth, thoughtfulness, and consideration toward others
  • applied to people, actions, or demeanor, and sometimes to tone of voice

Etymology

Etimology The kanji 優 has on-yomi ユウ and kun-yomi やさ-; in 優しい the kun-reading やさ- combines with the adjective suffix しい to form the native Japanese i-adjective meaning gentle or kind.

Composition

  • 優: core sense of gentleness and benevolence;
  • しい: adjective-ending suffix turning the base into an i-adjective

Usage

Used as an i-adjective to describe people, behavior, or tones that show care; in practice, it modifies nouns directly as 優しい人, 優しい声. The adverbial form is 優しく, used to describe how an action is performed, as in 優しく話す or 優しく接する; polite and casual registers both common, with polite forms 優しいです and 優しくします.
💡 Tips
Mnemonic: imagine a calm, smiling helper offering tea; 優 conveys gentleness and care, and adding しい yields yasashii, the trait of being kind.

Variations

  • 親切な (しんせつな) — kind, helpful
  • 温和な (おんわな) — gentle, mild
  • 思いやりのある (おもいやりのある) — considerate
  • 冷たい (つめたい) — cold, unfriendly (antonym)

Example Phrases

  • 駅の 係員 は 優しい 笑顔 で 案内 してくれた。
    Eki no kakariin wa yasashii egao de annai shite kureta.
    The station attendant guided me with a kind smile.
    Lista:
    • 駅の (eki no) – of the station
    • 係員 (kakariin) – staff
    • は (wa) – topic marker
    • 優しい (yasashii) – kind
    • 笑顔 (egao) – smile
    • で (de) – at/with
    • 案内 (annai) – guidance
    • してくれた (shite kureta) – did for me
    Core: 「優しい」 is an i-adjective; here it precedes the noun 「笑顔」 to form 「優しい笑顔」 meaning a kind smile.
優しい