優しい
やさしい
kind (person), gentle (person), easy (problem)
i-adjective
Conjugation Table
Present
優しい
Negative
優しくない
Past
優しかった
Past Negative
優しくなかった
Te Form
優しくて
Adverbial
優しく
Conditional
優しければ
Presumptive
優しいでしょう
Example Sentences
彼はとても優しい人です。
He is a very kind person.
Kare wa totemo yasashii hito desu.
昨日のテストは優しくなかった。
Yesterday's test wasn't easy.
Kinou no tesuto wa yasashiku nakatta.
優しい友達がいて、幸せです。
I'm happy to have kind friends.
Yasashii tomodachi ga ite, shiawase desu.
Grammar Notes & Usage Tips
•Conjugation Reminder**: 優しい is an i-adjective, so to make it negative, change the ending to 優しくない (やさしくない), meaning "not kind" or "not easy." Remember, i-adjectives don't need a particle when modifying a noun directly, like 優しい人 (やさしいひと) for "kind person."
•Past Tense Tip**: To express that someone was kind or a task was easy in the past, change 優しい to 優しかった (やさしかった). This follows the typical i-adjective past tense pattern by replacing the い with かった.
•Particle Usage**: When using 優しい to describe how someone acts towards another, pair it with the particle に to indicate the target, like in 彼はみんなに優しい (かれはみんなにやさしい) meaning "He is kind to everyone."
•Multiple Meanings**: Don't forget that 優しい can mean both "kind" and "easy," so context is key. If someone says テストは優しかった (テストはやさしかった), they're likely talking about an easy test, not a kind one!
•い-adjective: Conjugates by changing the い ending