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道Nihongo Path

雑

ざつ

rough; sloppy; crude; careless

By Nihongo PathUpdated

Examples

  1. 字が雑で読めない。

    じがざつでよめない。

    His handwriting is so sloppy I can't read it.

  2. お客が雑な作りのスタンドに座って靴を磨いてもらっている。

    おきゃくがざつなつくりのすたんどにすわってくつをみがいてもらっている。

    A customer is having his shoes shined on a slapped-together stand.

  3. 急いでいたとはいえ、あの仕事は雑すぎる。

    いそいでいたとはいえ、あのしごとはざつすぎる。

    He may have been in a hurry, but that work was far too slapdash.

Common patterns

雑な仕事
sloppy work
雑に扱う
to handle carelessly
性格が雑
to be a careless sort of person

Memory tip

Standing alone as a な-adjective, 雑 means careless or slapdash — a criticism. Inside compounds the same kanji carries its other sense, 'miscellaneous': 雑誌, 雑音, 雑用.

Kanji in this word

Quick check

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What does 雑 mean?