BondLingo Learn Japanese

Hey guys, welcome to another handy dandy online Japanese lesson from Bondlingo. Today we are going to be learning all about the popular word まずい mazui 不味い, which mean “bad” especially for food, in Japanese.

Using まずい Mazui 不味い to express that something is “bad” in Japanese (Especially food)

This is a really useful little word that you can apply to a number of different situations in your Japanese. Although we are mainly going to be learning today about it’s usage with food, we will also have a look at some other meanings of まずい mazui 不味い too. 

Today we are going to be breaking the lesson down into the following sections:  

1. What does まずい mazui 不味い mean? An overview of the definition and its various applications.
2. How to use まずい mazui 不味い in a sentence. A closer look into the grammar.
3. Example sentences using まずい mazui 不味い. A look at various examples with different meanings.
4. How to master まずい mazui 不味い in just 2 -3 days. A powerful study technique you can use to practice まずい mazui 不味い right now.
5. A summary of today’s lesson on まずい mazui 不味い. Let’s ensure you haven’t missed anything.

If you are already confident with some of the meanings, feel free to skip ahead to a section of your choice. We would recommend reading this article from the beginning however for the best effect! 

So let’s jump right in and look at the first section “What does まずい mazui 不味い mean? ” 

What does まずい mazui 不味い mean?

An overview of the definition and its various applications.

So まずい mazui 不味い has various meanings, however the most popular being to express:

bad (taste); unpalatable; unsavoury; unsavory; awful; terrible; unpleasant​Usually written using kana alone

The other meaning we will have a look at are:

poor; unskillful; unskilful; bungling; clumsy​

awkward; problematic; troublesome; unfavorable; unfavourable; unwise​

Generally it means “bad” but most commonly it is used around food that is bland or bad tasting. 

まずい mazui 不味い is an I adjective meaning it is usually used before a noun or at the ended of a sentence. 

不味い is the kanji for まずい mazui however it is normally used with kana alone. 

Now we need to learn how to put a sentence together with まずい mazui 不味い so let’s dash forward on to the next sentence.

How to use まずい mazui 不味い in a sentence.

A closer look into the grammar.

Take a look at this sentence that we have for you today using まずい mazui 不味い.

そのミルクはまずかった。
Sono miruku wa mazukatta.
The milk tasted bad.

The speaker is expressing that the milk tasted bad, Perhaps it has been left unattended to way beyond its sell by date. The speaker has also used まずい mazui 不味い in a past form “mazukatta” まずかった

What can you think of in your house that has tasted bad in the past? 

We are now going to look at some various senteces of まずい mazui 不味い with all of the meanings. 

Example sentences using まずい mazui 不味い.

A look at various examples with different meanings.

The first meaning is our main focus of the lesson which is: 

bad (taste); unpalatable; unsavoury; unsavory; awful; terrible; unpleasant​Usually written using kana alone

彼らが出した食事はまずかった。
Karera ga dashita shokuji wa mazukatta
The dinner they served was badly cooked.

彼は料理がまずいと文句を言った。
Kare wa ryouri ga mazui to monku wo itta
He complained of the dish tasting bad.

お母さんの料理はまずい
Okaasan no ryouri wa mazui
Mother’s cooking is terrible 

We will now look at the next meaning which is using まずい mazui 不味い to convey:

poor; unskillful; unskilful; bungling; clumsy​

彼のひっせきは大変まずい。なにがなんだかわからない。
Kare no hisseki wa taihen mazui. Nani ga nanda ka wakaranai
His handwriting is very poor, I cannot make head or tail of it.

彼の演説は、たいへんまずかった。
Kare no enzetsu wa taihen mazukatta
His speech was very poor.

Now we will look at まずい mazui 不味い with it’s final meaning: 

awkward; problematic; troublesome; unfavorable; unfavourable; unwise​

今は彼をたずねるにはまずい時間ではないですか。
Ima wa kare wo tazuneru ni ha mazui jikan de wa nai ka
Isn't this the wrong time to visit him?

Although there are many differnt meanings of まずい mazui 不味い to remember don’t worry. If you are finding it too overwhelming just stick with the first meaning of “bad tasting” as this is largely the most popular. 

Now we are going to give you a technique to esnure you can master まずい mazui 不味い in no time! 

How to master まずい mazui 不味い in just 2 -3 days.

A powerful study technique you can use to practice まずい mazui 不味い right now.

1. First start by thinking of 20 things you would describe as bad tasting
2. Write them all down in a sentence
3. Practice reading out loud the sentences from today’s lesson
4. Use まずい mazui 不味い with you language partners and friends to integrate it into your everyday vocabulary

A summary of today’s lesson on まずい mazui 不味い.

Let’s ensure you haven’t missed anything. 

Here is a quick summary of today’s lesson to ensure you haven’t missed anything 

1. まずい mazui 不味い has various meanings, however the most popular being to express : bad (taste); unpalatable; unsavoury; unsavory; awful; terrible; unpleasant​Usually written using kana alone
2. The other meaning are : poor; unskillful; unskilful; bungling; clumsy​;awkward; problematic; troublesome; unfavorable; unfavourable; unwise​
3. Generally it means “bad” but most commonly it is used around food that is bland or bad tasting.
4. まずい mazui 不味い is an I adjective meaning it is usually used before a noun or at the ended of a sentence.
5. 不味い is the kanji for まずい mazui however it is normally used with kana alone.

Well guys, that’s all for today’s lesson from BondLingo! 

We really hope that you have learnt something new today that you can use to help develop your Japanese communication skills. If you have any comments or suggestions on future content that you would like to see be sure to get in touch with us. 

We are really happy that you are taking the time to study off your own back. Remember, it is a hard journey, but one that needs to be taken step by step. Just being here and putting in the work proves that you have what it takes to go all the way! Until the next time またね.