Meaning

Primary

Obedient

Alternatives

Quiet, Calm

Word Type

い adjective

Explanation

Remember how you learned that 大人 means "adult?" Well this is the adjective version of that. The I-adjective (see how it ends in ?). What adjective do adults want to be able to use for their own kids? They want to say they are obedient, quiet kids!

Reading

おとなしい
  • Kyoko
    (Tokyo accent, female)
  • Kenichi
    (Tokyo accent, male)

Explanation

You already learned this reading when you learned 大人! You should be able to read this too!

Context

Pattern of Use

Common Word Combinations

  • 大人しい子

    a quiet child

    大人しい人

    a quiet person

    大人しい犬

    an obedient dog

Context Sentences

大人しい犬ですね。

That's a quiet dog.

女王は小さいころ、とても大人しかった。

The queen was very quiet when she was little.

今日はホテルで大人しくするよ。

I'll be relaxing at the hotel today.

Kanji Composition