Sugoi meaning: すごい (sugoi)
すごい (sugoi, “amazing (e.g. of strength)”) means "amazing", "great" or "incredible" in everyday Japanese. It can also mean "terrible" or "dreadful", so the situation tells you whether it's praise or a complaint.
It's an i-adjective, like おいしい (oishii, “good(-tasting)”). The dictionary gives 凄い as the written form but marks the word as usually written in kana.
Is sugoi good or bad?
Both. The core idea is "to an extreme degree", and the context decides the direction. The dictionary lists three senses: terrible, amazing, and "to a great extent".
- Praise: said about someone's skill, a meal, a view or a performance, it means "amazing".
- Complaint: said about a storm, the cold, a smell or a 渋滞 (じゅうたい, jūtai, “(traffic) congestion”), it means "awful". Japan-Dev's example is すごい渋滞だった, "the traffic was incredibly bad".
The Digital Daijisen, a Japanese dictionary, says this separates it from ひどい (hidoi, “very bad”), which is only negative.
The word is old. Its first sense in that dictionary is "frightening enough to make you shudder". In classical Japanese, すごし described things that gave you a chill: eerie, desolate, or so beautiful it made you shiver. The Nihon Kokugo Daijiten lists all three before the sense of "extreme in degree", which is where today's "amazing" and すごく come from.
Sugoku, sugoi kirei and sugoi dekai
すごく (sugoku, “extremely”) is the adverb: it puts "very" in front of an adjective or verb. You can say すごく before おいしい, きれい (kirei, “pretty”) or でかい (dekai, “huge”).
Many people also put すごい straight in front of an adjective, so "sugoi kirei" and "sugoi dekai" are the casual versions of すごくきれい and すごくでかい:
- Sugoi kirei (すごいきれい) means "really pretty" or "really beautiful". きれい can also mean "clean".
- Sugoi dekai (すごいでかい) means "really huge". でかい is itself casual, so this is friends-and-family Japanese.
The dictionary notes that people do this in speech. Self-Taught Japanese says it's fine with many younger speakers but not strictly correct grammar. In writing, use すごく.
| Japanese | Reading | Romaji | Meaning | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| すごく | すごく | sugoku | extremely; very; terribly | The adverb: very, extremely |
| すげー | すげー | sugē | incredible; unbelievable; terrific | Casual and rough: spoken, among friends |
| ものすごい | ものすごい | monosugoi | terrific; staggering; tremendous | Even stronger, and also swings between awful and amazing |
| 素晴らしい | すばらしい | subarashii | wonderful; splendid; magnificent | Praise, only positive |
| やばい | やばい | yabai | terrific; amazing; cool | Slang, and like すごい it swings between awful and amazing |
Sugoi in slang and everyday speech
すごい is already casual. The dictionary marks it as colloquial, and Coto Academy says it is mostly used in casual conversation, so you will hear it less in formal settings.
In a sentence, it's usually すごい!, すごいね or, more politely, すごいですね. To a boss or teacher, many people prefer to name what impressed them rather than say すごい alone.
The rougher spoken form is すげー (also written すげえ). It's often linked with men's speech, but Coto Academy notes that it's used across genders.
How to reply when someone says sugoi to you
When someone says すごい about you, a plain thank-you is always fine. Japan-Dev suggests a thank-you or a modest "no, no".
| Japanese | Reading | Romaji | Meaning | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ありがとう | ありがとう | arigatō | thank you; thanks | Plain thanks; add ございます to be polite |
| いいえ | いいえ | iie | you're welcome; not at all; don't mention it | Deflecting the praise: no, no, not at all |
More ways to say thanks are in Thank You in Japanese. If you're the one praising, 素晴らしい or かっこいい (kakkoii, “attractive”) can be more precise.
Practise phrases for feelings
Say how you feel, in Japanese, with sound, in a two-minute quiz.
Questions about sugoi
What does "Sugoi Kirei" mean?
"Sugoi kirei" means "really pretty" or "really beautiful". It's すごい in front of きれい, the casual form of すごくきれい.
How do I reply to Sugoi?
Say ありがとう, or ありがとうございます to be polite. You can also play it down with いいえ.
Is Sugoi good or bad?
Sugoi can be good or bad: it means "amazing" in praise and "awful" in a complaint. The situation and your tone decide.
What is the meaning of Sugoi Dekai?
"Sugoi dekai" means "really huge". でかい is casual for "big", and すごい adds to it.
What does "sugoi" mean in slang?
In casual speech, sugoi means "amazing" or "incredible", and すげー is the rougher spoken form. やばい works the same way: it can be bad or good.
What does "I suki you" mean?
"I suki you" isn't Japanese. It looks like a mix of "I like you" and 好き (すき, suki, “liking”), the Japanese word for "like" or, with feeling, "love". The real way to say it is covered in our article on I Love You in Japanese.
Do Japanese people actually say Sugoi?
Yes, すごい is a very common everyday word in Japanese, though it's casual and heard less in formal settings.
How do Japanese say "let's go"?
Among friends, say 行こう (ikō), from 行く (いく, iku, “to go”). The polite form is 行きましょう (ikimashō).
How do you say WTF in Japanese?
There is no exact match. For "what?!" in shock, people say 何だって (なんだって, nandatte, “what?!”). Swear words are easy to get wrong in tone, so don't copy strong ones from videos before you know the context.
What is "I love your heart" in Japanese?
Japanese has no set phrase for it. The word for "heart" is 心 (こころ, kokoro, “mind”), but a native speaker should check any sentence you build. People usually name the quality they like, such as someone's kindness. For the ways people really say love, see I Love You in Japanese.
Sources
- Readings and meanings: JMdict (EDRDG, CC BY-SA 4.0), including its senses for すごい and its notes that the word is usually written in kana and that すげー is colloquial.
- Definitions, the colloquial note and the comparison with ひどい (Digital Daijisen), and the senses of the older form すごし (Nihon Kokugo Daijiten): Kotobank, 凄い; Weblio, 凄い.
- Negative uses and replying to a compliment: Japan-Dev, Incredible or Terrible?: "Sugoi" Meaning in English and Japanese.
- Casual use and すげー: Coto Academy, 20 Ways to use the Japanese Word: すごい (Sugoi)!; Self-Taught Japanese, Important Japanese word: "sugoi".
- The "let's" form of 行く: Gokigen, Mastering the Japanese Volitional Form.
- Reviewed independently; the points about すごい in front of adjectives, replying to praise, すごいですね to a superior, すげー, 行こう and the swearing question are waiting for a native speaker's check.