The word mendokusai is very simple and frequently used in the Japanese language. Perhaps you have heard it in some anime or manga, or simply noticed the use of this expression by other people. In this article, we will try to understand the true meaning of the word mendokusai.
The word is written mendoukusai [面倒くさい] and literally means “smelly problems” where mendou means problems and kusai means stink. The word problem is composed of [面] which means face and mask, along with the kanji [倒] which means to topple, fall, collapse, break, and invert. Stink can also be written with ideograms [臭い].
From its ideograms, we conclude that something is not pleasant, with no reason to smile but rather to irritate. Many use this word when they do not want to do something, find it boring, or think it’s a drag to have to perform a certain action, when something is laborious and tiring. In other words, when they feel the stink of some annoying and problematic task.
Understanding the meaning of Mendokusai
If we try to translate the word mendokusai into Portuguese, we can arrive at the following results:
- Inconvenience;
- Tiring;
- Annoying;
- Boring;
- Difficult;
- Waste of time;
- Not worth it;
- Problematic;
- I’m too lazy to do it;
- Laborious;
- Tiring;
- A drag;
- Unwilling;
- (o￢ω￢o)
Men or young people often use the expression mendokuse [面倒くせー] where the ending see [せー] creates a rebellious, informal, and rude vibe. Shikamaru Nara from Naruto often uses the expression mendokusee. There is also a manga titled omaera zenin mendokusai that carries this expression.
Even though we are not using the [U] between mendou in the article, as its pronunciation is hidden, we remember that the correct way to write in Japanese is mendoukusai [めんどうくさい] or mendoukusee [めんどうくせー]. While researching this topic, I also discovered the word mendouwomiru which means to take care of someone. Is the Japanese saying that taking care of someone is a drag and problematic?
In any case, the word mendokusai is used to express discontent with something. To say that something is an inconvenience, boring, difficult, and problematic. Did you know this word? Did you know its meaning? If you liked this short article, share it with friends and leave your comments.
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