嫌い
きらい
dislike
na-adjective
Conjugation Table
Present
嫌いだ
Negative
嫌いじゃない
Past
嫌いだった
Past Negative
嫌いじゃなかった
Te Form
嫌いで
Adverbial
嫌いに
Conditional
嫌いなら
Presumptive
嫌いでしょう
Example Sentences
野菜が嫌いです。
I dislike vegetables.
Yasai ga kirai desu.
彼は魚が嫌いでした。
He disliked fish.
Kare wa sakana ga kirai deshita.
勉強が嫌いじゃないです。
I don't dislike studying.
Benkyou ga kirai janai desu.
Grammar Notes & Usage Tips
•Na-Adjective Basics**: 嫌い (きらい) is a na-adjective, which means when you use it to describe a noun, you typically add "な" between 嫌い and the noun, like in 嫌いな食べ物 (きらいなたべもの) for "disliked food."
•Particle Practice**: When expressing dislike towards something, use the particle が, as in すしが嫌いです (すしがきらいです), meaning "I dislike sushi." Remember, using は instead of が can subtly change the emphasis in your sentence.
•Conjugation Tips**: Since 嫌い is a na-adjective, it doesn't conjugate like i-adjectives. For example, the negative form is 嫌いじゃない (きらいじゃない), meaning "do not dislike," which is often used more softly than simply saying 嫌い.
•Cultural Context**: Be cautious when using 嫌い, as it can come across quite strong in Japanese. Sometimes it's more polite to say something like あまり好きじゃない (あまりすきじゃない), meaning "I don't particularly like it."
•な-adjective: Uses な before nouns, conjugates like a noun