変(へん)

Forms

• 変(へん)な + noun: strange (attributive)
• 変(へん)だ/です: is strange (predicate)
• 変(へん)に: strangely (adverb)

Common patterns

• 変(へん)な音(おと): strange sound
• 変(へん)な味(あじ): weird taste
• 変(へん)だな: That's strange (casual reflection)
• 何(なに)か変(へん): something is off

Watch out

変(へん)な人(ひと) is not a mild word. It suggests someone unsettling or creepy rather than merely unusual, and saying it to or about someone present is rude. For harmless eccentricity, Japanese uses 変(か)わっている (he's a bit different / one of a kind), which can even be affectionate.

Similar words

• おかしい: also 'off, not right', and the usual word for a machine or a body not working properly (調子(ちょうし)がおかしい). It additionally means 'funny, amusing', which 変(へん) never does.
• 奇妙(きみょう): stiffer and more written; describes something curiously strange rather than merely wrong.
• 不思議(ふしぎ): strange in an interesting, wonder-provoking way. 変(へん) carries unease; 不思議(ふしぎ) carries curiosity.
• Opposite: 普通(ふつう) (ordinary, normal).