良い

Japanese

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
良
よ
Grade: 4
kun’yomi

Modern form of Old Japanese adjective よし (yoshi).[1][2][3]

/joɕi/ (classical 終止形 (shūshikei) or terminal form) → /joki/ (classical 連体形 (rentaikei) or attributive form) → /joi/ (modern shūshikei and rentaikei)

Alternative forms

  • 善い, 好い, 吉い, 佳い, 宜い

Pronunciation

Adjective

良い (-i inflection, hiragana よい, rōmaji yoi)

  1. good
    Antonyms: 悪い, 駄目
Usage notes
  • Most often written in hiragana. The kanji spelling is generally reserved for more formal writing.
Inflection
Derived terms

Suffix

良い (hiragana よい, rōmaji -yoi)

  1. easy
Usage notes
  • Most often written in hiragana. The kanji spelling is generally reserved for more formal writing.
  • Attaches to the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of a verb. Example:
    読 (よ)み良 (よ)い ― yomiyoi ― easy to read
However, in modern Japanese, the adjective 安い, 易い (yasui, “easy, easygoing”) is more commonly used to express this meaning.

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
良
え
Grade: 4
kun’yomi

Phonetic shift from the Old Japanese yoshi form of yoi above. Already in use as early as the Nihon Shoki, circa 720,[1][2][3] then becoming common in eastern Japanese from the Edo period.[2] This form is now obsolete, though it may still be found in some dialects.

/joɕi/ (classical 終止形 (shūshikei) or terminal form) → /eɕi/ (classical 終止形 (shūshikei) or terminal form) → /eki/ (classical 連体形 (rentaikei) or attributive form) → /ei/ (modern shūshikei and rentaikei)

Alternative forms

Pronunciation

Adjective

良い (-i inflection, hiragana えい, rōmaji ei)

  1. (obsolete) good

Etymology 3

Kanji in this term
良
い
Grade: 4
kun’yomi

Phonetic shift from ei above. This is now the most common form used in casual spoken Japanese.[1][2][3]

/ei/ → /ii/

Alternative forms

Pronunciation

Adjective

良い (-i inflection, hiragana いい, rōmaji ii)

  1. (colloquial, informal) good
  2. (colloquial, predicative only) enough; not wanted any more.
    酒 (さけ)はもういい
    sake wa mō ii
    I have had enough wine/I don't want any more wine.
Usage notes
  • Most often written in hiragana. The kanji spelling is generally reserved for more formal writing.
  • The ii form does not inflect — it is only used in the 終止形 (shūshikei, “terminal form”) and 連体形 (rentaikei, “attributive form”) of ii. All other grammatical forms are based on the yoi form above. Compare the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or adverbial form”) yoku or the 過去形 (kakokei, “past tense”) yokatta: there is no *iku or *ikatta form.
  • In ironic usages denoting "very bad; embarrassing", the ii form is preferred to the yoi form.
Inflection
Derived terms

References

  1. 1 2 3 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  3. 1 2 3 1995, 大辞泉 (Daijisen) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
  4. 1 2 1998, NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 (NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: NHK, →ISBN
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