1.
memory (ability); ability to learn and remember things
One's capacity to memorize and retain information. Often used with adjectives like good or bad to describe someone's memory skills.
Forms
物 (things) + 覚え (remembering) → the ability to take things in and retain them
Common patterns
The word is almost always the subject of an evaluating adjective, marked with が:
- 物覚えがいい - to have a good memory
- 物覚えが悪い - to have a bad memory
- 物覚えが早い - to be a quick learner
- 物覚えが遅い - to be a slow learner
It is rarely the object of a verb, and it does not take a plural or a count.
Usage
物覚え names the practical knack of picking things up — a new job, a set of names, a route — not memories themselves (思い出) and not the mental faculty of memory in the abstract (記憶).
Saying 物覚えが悪い of yourself is an ordinary, mildly self-deprecating remark. Said of someone else it is a criticism of their competence, so it is best avoided to their face.