The Meaning of kimari warui [決まり悪い] In Japanese

決まり悪い
きまりわるい
Romaji: kimari warui N4

What does 決まり悪い mean?

Translation and Meaning

awkward, ill at ease, embarrassed, uncomfortable

Definition

決まり悪い means feeling awkward or ill at ease in a social setting, often after something doesn’t go as planned, describing a self-conscious discomfort that shows in behavior.

Type

Adjective (i-adjective)

Stroke Order

Meanings

  • Feeling awkward or embarrassed in a social setting
  • A moment or action that feels out of place, causing discomfort
  • A person who appears self-conscious or blushes in front of others

Etymology

Phonetic evolution: the term originated from the colloquial contraction of 決まりが悪い, with the pronunciation kimari warui preserved while the written form increasingly appears as 決まり悪い in modern usage.

Composition

  • 決まり: propriety, convention, rule
  • 悪い: bad
  • When these combine, they express a social expectation not being met and the resulting discomfort, yielding the idiomatic sense of awkwardness

Usage

Used mainly in casual or spoken Japanese to express personal discomfort in social situations, particularly after a misstep or when something feels out of place; not common in formal writing. Examples in Japanese: みんなの前で話すと決まり悪い; 失敗して決まり悪い.
💡 Tips
Mnemonic: treat 決まり as a line or rule you’re supposed to follow; when you miss that line, 悪い means it’s bad, so you feel kimari warui—imagine stepping out of line at a formal event.

Variations

  • 気まずい (kimazui) — awkward, uneasy
  • 居心地が悪い (igokochi ga warui) — uncomfortable, a sense of unease
  • 恥ずかしい (hazukashii) — embarrassed

Example Phrases

  • 会議で 発言を 忘れてしまい、 みんなの前で 決まり悪い。
    Kaigi de hatsugen o wasurete shimai, minna no mae de kimariwarui.
    I forgot my speech at the meeting and felt awkward in front of everyone.
    Lista:
    • 会議で (kaigi de) – at a meeting
    • 発言を (hatsugen o) – a remark
    • 忘れてしまい (wasurete shimai) – forgot and
    • みんなの前で (minna no mae de) – in front of everyone
    • 決まり悪い (kimariwarui) – awkward
    「決まり悪い」は、社交の場で恥ずかしく感じる状態を表す形容詞。
決まり悪い