2006-07-12 02:38:20 · 13 answers · asked by neeeooooww 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Languages
There's a lot of silly replies here, from people who don't know anything about Japanese. Ka is NEVER pronounced like 'car'!
可愛い 【かわいい or かわゆい】 (adj) (sl) pretty; cute; lovely; charming; dear; darling; pet;
It doesn't even have a は / 'ha' in it!
For pronunciation, using the accent of South East England as a guide,
ka - like the 'ca' in cabinet. 'a' sounds in Japanese are always like the 'a' in 'pat'.
wa - again, the 'a' is like in 'pat', the 'w' is just like your average 'w' in 'white' or 'what'.
ii - think rustic - 'Eee by goooom!!' 'i' in Japanese is always pronounced the way we pronounce the letter e. Two of them together just make a longer vowel sound.
So now you just put them together - ka-wa-ii! (It does NOT rhyme with the English pronunciation of Hawaii!)
2006-07-12 14:07:25 · answer #1 · answered by _ 6 · 4⤊ 5⤋
In jap it ability "gorgeous" As in That canines is kawaii. the way american ladies use "gorgeous" to describe boys, its no longer utilized in that similar way. this is surely in simple terms ability gorgeous as in a filled animal, or a puppy, etc. i'm fluent once you've anymore questions. =] P.S. the guy above me reported "kawai" is for scary..nicely its surely Kowai...yeah, haha. =]
2016-10-14 09:36:53 · answer #2 · answered by hudrick 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If I came across this word when reading (I don't spreak Japanese btw) I would pronounce it like Hawaii with a k!
2006-07-12 02:48:43 · answer #3 · answered by ehc11 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Japanese vowel sounds are wonderfully clear.
A is always "ah"
I is always "ee"
U is always "oo"
E is always "ay" (as in "play")
O is always "oh"
the combination "ai" is pronounced like "eye"
Put it together, kawaii
Kah Why Ee
Spoken at normal speed, it sounds like:
Kah Why (extend the last syllable a bit)
2006-07-12 07:22:18 · answer #4 · answered by Lao Polyglot 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Kaaaa waaaa iiiiiiiiiiiiii
かはいい
2006-07-12 02:44:00 · answer #5 · answered by nokia_3315i 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
well believe it or not i was reading an intresting article in "Elle" magazine, where this phrase occured, describing Rupert Grint, being a bit of a fan, i think u say it like this :
ka-way-eeeeeeee
2006-07-12 02:44:56 · answer #6 · answered by ................... 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Why don't you try using Alta Vista Babel Fish? http://babel.altavista.com/
It translates things for you, very easy to use.
2006-07-12 03:52:36 · answer #7 · answered by charliebrown 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The pronunciation is ka-wa'-ee.
2006-07-12 02:42:16 · answer #8 · answered by Blue Jean 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Velly nice.
2006-07-16 01:29:18 · answer #9 · answered by amrhappy1 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
doesn't mean cute, means a specific type of cute.
2006-07-12 02:41:37 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋