易(やさ)しい

やさしい
i-adjective
easy, simple
descriptive
See also: 優(やさ)しい (kind, gentle)
Conjugation
AffirmativeNegative
Present易(やさ)しい易(やさ)しくない
Past易(やさ)しかった易(やさ)しくなかった
て form易(やさ)しくて易(やさ)しくなくて
Adverbial易(やさ)しく—
Conditional ば易(やさ)しければ易(やさ)しくなければ
Conditional たら易(やさ)しかったら易(やさ)しくなかったら
1. easy, simple
Not difficult to do, answer, or understand. Used of tasks, questions, books, and language, especially language pitched at a learner's or child's level.
易(やさ)しい本(ほん)だ。
An easy book.
この問題(もんだい)は易(やさ)しいです。
This problem is easy.
易(やさ)しい日本語(にほんご)で書(か)いてあります。
It's written in easy Japanese.
もっと易(やさ)しい問題(もんだい)をください。
Please give me an easier problem.
この仕事(しごと)は思(おも)ったより易(やさ)しかった。
This job was easier than I thought.
この漢字(かんじ)は易(やさ)しいから、すぐに覚(おぼ)えられます。
This kanji is easy, so you can memorize it quickly.
易(やさ)しい問題(もんだい)ばかりだと思(おも)っていたが、最後(さいご)の問題(もんだい)は少(すこ)し難(むずか)しかった。
I thought all the problems would be easy, but the last one was a little difficult.
この本(ほん)は易(やさ)しい言葉(ことば)で書(か)いてあるので、子供(こども)でも読(よ)める。とてもいい本(ほん)です。
This book is written in easy words, so even children can read it. It's a very good book.

易(やさ)しい means easy: not difficult to do or understand. It describes tasks, questions, texts, and language (易(やさ)しい問題(もんだい), 易(やさ)しい日本語(にほんご)), and works both before a noun and as a predicate (この問題(もんだい)は易(やさ)しい).

Usage

The adverbial form 易(やさ)しく is used mainly for putting something into simple terms: 易(やさ)しく説明(せつめい)する (to explain in plain words), 易(やさ)しく書(か)き直(なお)す (to rewrite simply). For "easily" in the sense of without effort, 簡単(かんたん)に is used: 簡単(かんたん)にできる (can do it easily).

Watch out

優(やさ)しい (kind, gentle) is a different word with the same reading. In kana-only writing やさしい can be either, so やさしく説明(せつめい)する may mean "explain simply" or "explain kindly"; context decides.

Similar words

Related Words

Antonym: 難(むずか)しい (difficult)
Compare: 優(やさ)しい (kind, gentle (different word, same reading))
Synonym: 簡単(かんたん) (easy, simple (na-adjective))
Compare: ちょろい (easy, simple, a piece of cake)
basic
Added 2026.1.7 21:20 · Revised 2026.10.1 17:29
00500/00765_yasashii