What Kawaii Means: かわいい, and Japan's Culture of Cute

What kawaii means: かわいい (kawaii)

Kawaii is かわいい (kawaii, “cute”), and it means "cute", "adorable" or "lovable". It is wider than the English word: the dictionary also lists "charming", "dear" and "innocent, childlike", so it covers anything that makes you feel fond and a little protective.

It's usually written in kana, although the dictionary gives 可愛い as its kanji form. Those kanji are ateji, characters chosen for their meaning and not for the sound: 可 (can, able) and 愛 (love) together read as "able to be loved". People use かわいい all day for babies, pets, clothes, food, characters, and more and more for adults.

It's an ordinary adjective: かわいい (cute), かわいくない (not cute), かわいかった (was cute). On its own, かわいい! means "so cute!"

Is kawaii cute or pretty? Kawaii vs cute

Kawaii is closer to "cute" than to "pretty", but it's not the same as either. The dictionary lists "cute, adorable, charming, lovely, pretty" as one sense, so "pretty" is part of it. What sets it apart is the feeling behind it. A major Japanese dictionary, the Digital Daijisen, describes it as a feeling drawn to small or weak things, a wish to cherish them, and a childlike, innocent look that wins people over.

The same dictionary notes that the word now reaches things that aren't small or weak at all, such as a building or an old man, wherever people feel liking or closeness.

Japanese has other words for the other kinds of praise:

きれい is the one to compare most. It means "pretty, beautiful" and also "clean", and it points at a tidy, finished beauty. かわいい points at charm and affection. Many speakers would call a baby かわいい and an elegant woman in a kimono きれい, though this is a tendency, not a rule.

Where the word kawaii comes from

Kawaii began as a different feeling. The usual explanation is that it comes from かほはゆし (顔映ゆし), which meant feeling awkward or embarrassed, shortened to かはゆし, then かわゆい, then かわいい. The Seisenban Nihon Kokugo Daijiten, a standard Japanese dictionary, calls this the presumed origin, not a certainty.

The same dictionary describes how the sense moved:

• The earliest example it gives is in the Konjaku Monogatari (around 1120), where かはゆし means awkward or embarrassed.
• In the medieval period it came to mean "hard to bear seeing", and so "pitiable".
• Later, affection born of pity for the weak came to dominate, and in the later early-modern period the "pitiable" sense dropped out, leaving "lovable".

The old sense hasn't vanished from the language. かわいそう (kawaisō, “poor”) still means "poor thing". It does not mean "cute".

The feeling of cute is older than the word. A Japan Foundation summary of the critic Yomota Inuhiko's book "Kawaii" ron traces kawaii back to the Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon, a work from the Heian period. Japanese Wikipedia adds that in classical Japanese, うつくし was the word closer to today's "cute", while かはゆし meant something nearer to "pitiable". So one source dates the word and the other the feeling.

Kawaii culture: Hello Kitty, handwriting and Japan's love of cute

Kawaii culture is the culture of cuteness in Japan: characters, fashion, handwriting, food and design. The modern version took shape in the 1970s.

• Handwriting. English Wikipedia describes a style that teenage girls developed in the 1970s, written sideways with mechanical pencils and decorated with hearts and stars. It caused rows at schools and was later picked up by magazines and advertising. It cites the researcher Yamane Kazuma, who studied it in the 1980s.
• Characters. Sanrio's ハローキティ (harōkiti, “Hello Kitty (Sanrio product line)”) was created in 1974, and the first item, a vinyl coin purse, went on sale in 1975. Japanese Wikipedia also points to Sanrio's stationery and character goods in the 1970s as a driver of the "cute" boom.
• Mascots and fashion. Local governments have their own mascots, ゆるキャラ (yurukyara, “costumed mascot character (oft. devised for PR purposes by local governments, government departments, etc.)”), and lolita and decora are fashion subcultures often listed as part of kawaii culture.

By the 2000s the word had travelled with anime and the internet. The promoter Sakurai Takamasa wrote in 2009 that it had become the Japanese word that spread furthest in the world since the start of the 21st century (as Japanese Wikipedia reports it). In February 2009, Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs appointed three young women from fashion as "Pop Culture Envoys", nicknamed the "Kawaii Ambassadors".

Kawaii is not always sweet. Yomota's book, as the Japan Foundation summarises it, argues that its elements include ugliness and a hint of the grotesque as well as beauty. Two words show that edge:

• ブサかわ (busakawa, “ugly but cute”): for a pug with a squashed face or a charmingly odd character.
• キモかわいい (kimokawaii, “both repellant and attractive at the same time”): "creepy-cute". Japanese Wikipedia says it began as youth slang in the late 1990s, without a source.

The dictionary marks both as slang.

A 2014 study of one fashion magazine for high school girls found that かわいい made up 27 percent of its adjectives.

Can you call a girl, or a guy, kawaii?

Yes to both. かわいい is a compliment, and it's used for women, men, children, animals and objects.

Traditionally it was for children and feminine things. Japanese Wikipedia notes that today, especially among young people, it's also used for adult men and older people, with little thought for the respect usually owed to age or status.

So the real question is how it lands:

• To a woman, it's a common, friendly compliment from friends. From a stranger, how it feels depends on tone and setting, as it would in English.
• To a man, it can be affectionate, and it points at a boyish or endearing side. Coto Academy says it keeps a feminine nuance. The word for his looks or style is かっこいい. Some men like being called かわいい and some don't.
• To someone older or senior, use care. Young people do say it, but a word meant as warm can sound as if you're not showing the respect their age or position calls for.

Speakers may disagree on how these land, so treat them as tendencies.

How to say so cute in Japanese

The shortest way is かわいい! on its own. To turn up the volume, put a word before it:

めっちゃ is a casual intensifier. Japanese Wikipedia says it comes from めちゃくちゃ, started in the Kansai dialect and has spread among young people across Japan. So めっちゃかわいい is "so cute", with a chatty, casual feel. かわいいです is the polite form.

To agree with someone who says かわいい, see Yes in Japanese.

Two more forms: the verb 可愛がる (かわいがる, kawaigaru, “to be affectionate to”) and the noun 可愛げ (かわいげ, kawaige, “charm (e.g. of an innocent child)”).

Kawaii or suki? Cute is not love

Kawaii says "that's cute". It doesn't say "I like you". 好き (すき, suki, “liking”) is the word for liking, and the dictionary lists a romantic sense too: "liking romantically; being in love with". 大好き (だいすき, daisuki, “liking very much”) is the stronger "I really like it".

かわいい reacts to what you see, and 好き is about what you feel. For how people really confess, read I Love You in Japanese. For character types that mix cute and cold, see Tsundere Meaning.

Questions about what kawaii means

What does kawaii mean?

Kawaii (かわいい) means "cute", "adorable" or "lovable". It's used for animals, objects and people.

Can you call a girl kawaii?

Yes, かわいい is a common compliment for women and girls. It's friendly between friends. From a stranger, the tone and the situation decide how it lands, as in English.

Can you say kawaii to a guy?

Yes, and it's increasingly heard for men. It usually means endearing or boyish, not handsome: for looks and style, say かっこいい.

Is kawaii cute or pretty?

Kawaii is mainly "cute", and "pretty" is one of its senses in the dictionary. It's about charm and affection. きれい is the word for polished, elegant beauty.

What is the difference between cute and kawaii?

Kawaii covers more ground than the usual English "cute". It also covers pretty, lovable, innocent and childlike, and in kawaii culture it can mix in the odd, as in ブサかわ.

What does suki mean in Japanese?

Suki (好き) means "liking" or "being fond of", and in the right setting it means "being in love with". 大好き is "liking very much".

What does "I suki you" mean?

"I suki you" isn't Japanese: it mixes English with 好き, and is probably a joke or a learner's slip, meaning "I like you". In real Japanese you'd say 好き on its own, without the English words around it. Our guide to saying I love you covers how.

What is the 5 minute rule in Japan?

The 5 minute rule in Japan is the habit of arriving or being ready five minutes early. In Japanese it's 五分前行動 (ごふんまえこうどう, gofunmaekōdō, “arriving five minutes early”), and the dictionary defines it as the practice of always being early to ensure punctuality. One business-etiquette guide adds that arriving about ten minutes before a meeting shows reliability.

Can I show cleavage in Japan?

Showing cleavage in Japan is allowed but uncommon in everyday dress. One travel guide says very low-cut tops are not common streetwear and advises skipping them at temples and shrines. It's a matter of custom and modesty, not a rule.

How do you say what the f*ck in Japanese?

There isn't one exact match in Japanese. The mild shock word ええっ (ē, “Eh?”) is only "Eh? What?", nowhere near as strong. Avoid rude phrases with anyone you don't know well.

Sources

• Readings and meanings: JMdict (EDRDG, CC BY-SA 4.0), including its notes that かわいい is usually written in kana, that ブサかわ is slang, and its definition of 五分前行動.
• The senses, the ateji, the presumed origin and the history of かわいい: Kotobank, 可愛い (Digital Daijisen and Seisenban Nihon Kokugo Daijiten).
• The うつくし remark, キモかわいい, men and elders, and Sakurai Takamasa's remark (some of these lines carry no citation on the page): Japanese Wikipedia, 可愛い; and on めっちゃ, めっちゃ.
• The Pillow Book link, ugliness and the grotesque in kawaii: Japan Foundation, Worth Sharing: "Kawaii" ron (The Theory of Kawaii) by Yomota Inuhiko.
• 1970s handwriting, the meaning of 可愛い as "able to be loved", and the culture: English Wikipedia, Kawaii and Hello Kitty.
• The 2009 Pop Culture Envoys, nicknamed the Kawaii Ambassadors: ITmedia blog, カワイイ大使, February 2009.
• Usage, men, and kawaii culture examples: Coto Academy, What is Kawaii (かわいい).
• Adjective share in a high school girls' magazine: Miyajima and Sato, Research the meaning of the "kawaii", Japanese Society for the Science of Design, 2014.
• Dress and the 5 minute habit: Japlanease, What to Wear in Japan; E-Housing, Guide to Japanese business etiquette.
• Reviewed independently; the points about calling men and older people kawaii, きれい versus かわいい, めっちゃ, the history and the dress and punctuality customs are waiting for a native speaker's check.