泥臭い
どろくさい
i-adjective
unrefined; rustic; unsophisticated; gritty
Conjugation
| Affirmative | Negative | |
|---|---|---|
| Present | 泥臭い | 泥臭くない |
| Past | 泥臭かった | 泥臭くなかった |
| て form | 泥臭くて | 泥臭くなくて |
| Adverbial | 泥臭く | — |
| Conditional ば | 泥臭ければ | 泥臭くなければ |
| Conditional たら | 泥臭かったら | 泥臭くなかったら |
1.
smelling of mud; muddy-smelling
Literally having the smell of mud or earth, as with freshwater fish or unwashed vegetables.
この魚は泥臭い。
This fish smells muddy.
川で釣った魚は泥臭いことがある。
Fish caught in rivers can sometimes have a muddy smell.
泥臭さを取るために牛乳に漬けておく。
Soak it in milk to remove the muddy smell.
2.
unrefined; rustic; unsophisticated; rough around the edges
Figuratively, lacking polish or elegance. Can be used critically to mean crude, or positively to mean earnest and down-to-earth.
泥臭いやり方だ。
It's an unrefined way of doing things.
泥臭い営業スタイルが彼の持ち味だ。
His gritty sales style is his strong point.
スマートではないが、泥臭い努力が最後には実を結んだ。
It wasn't elegant, but the unglamorous hard work bore fruit in the end.
USAGE:
泥臭い is an i-adjective combining 泥 (mud) and 臭い (smelling of). The figurative sense (sense 2) can be either negative (crude, unsophisticated) or positive (earnest, gritty, down-to-earth), depending on context.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 泥臭い努力 (unglamorous effort)
- 泥臭いやり方 (rough-and-ready approach)
- 泥臭い営業 (gritty salesmanship)
SIMILAR WORDS:
野暮ったい means unfashionable or unsophisticated in appearance or taste. 泥臭い emphasizes a raw, unpolished quality that can imply hard work and persistence.