Hi, I’m Junpei(Junko). I’ve been teaching Japanese for 17 years in Hong Kong. Today, I’d like to write about the word 「適当 てきとう」, which is an idea that one of my students gave me.
Do you know the definition of “適当”? One of my students told me that many Japanese learners believe that the meaning of 「適当」is suitable or appropriate.
According to the dictionary, it means:
- 適当な てきとうな＋名詞: adjective suitable
- てきとうに～する: adverb do something appropriately
Examples:
- その格好は山登りに適当だ。
- そのかっこうはやまのぼりにてきとうだ。
- These outfits are suitable for climbing mountains.
- 山登りに適当な服装
- やまのぼりにてきとうなふくそう
- The outfits that are suitable for climbing mountains
- 人参を適当に切ってください。
- にんじんをてきとうに切ってください。
- Please cut the carrots appropriately.
But in fact, most Japanese people use this word differently.
Example 1:
A: ちょっとにんじんを切ってくれる？ (Would you cut the carrots?)
B: どのくらいの大きさ？ (How big should I cut them?)
A: 適当でいいよ。 (Any size is fine.)
Example 2:
A: この前お願いした書類できた？ (Have you finished the documents I asked you for earlier?)
B: 終わりましたよ。これです。 (Yes, I’ve done it. Here you are.)
A: ありがとう。ちょっと見せて。 (Thanks. Let me have a look.)
ああ、いろいろ間違えていますよ。適当にしないでくださいよ。
(Oh, there are a lot of mistakes. Please don’t do things carelessly.)
As shown in the examples, we usually use 「適当」to describe doing something in a careless or haphazard manner. We can also use this word to describe people’s tendencies.
Example Sentences:
- Gibbさんは適当ですよね。 (Mr. Gibb is quite careless, isn’t he?)
- Gibbさんの仕事は適当ですよね。 (Mr. Gibb’s work is quite careless, isn’t it?)
When you talk with Japanese people, please listen very carefully. Many people use this term frequently in various situations.
