心細い
こころぼそい
adjective (i-adjective)
anxious; helpless; lonely
Conjugation
| Affirmative | Negative | |
|---|---|---|
| Present | 心細い | 心細くない |
| Past | 心細かった | 心細くなかった |
| て form | 心細くて | 心細くなくて |
| Adverbial | 心細く | — |
| Conditional ば | 心細ければ | 心細くなければ |
| Conditional たら | 心細かったら | 心細くなかったら |
1.
anxious; uneasy; helpless
Feeling worried and insecure due to a lack of support, companionship, or reassurance. Describes a vulnerable emotional state where one feels unable to rely on anything.
ひとりで心細い。
I feel anxious being alone.
知り合いのいない街で心細くなった。
I felt helpless in a city where I didn't know anyone.
初めての海外旅行で、言葉も通じず心細い思いをした。
On my first trip abroad, I felt helpless because I couldn't communicate.
Literally 'heart-thin,' this word describes a feeling of vulnerability and unease that comes from lacking support or companionship. It is not simply 'sad' or 'lonely' but specifically conveys the insecurity of being without someone or something to rely on.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 心細い思いをする — to have an anxious experience
- 心細くなる — to start feeling uneasy
- 心細い気持ち — a feeling of helplessness
- ひとりで心細い — feeling anxious being alone
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 不安 — anxiety; more general and can apply to any worry, while 心細い specifically implies lacking support
- 寂しい — lonely; focuses on missing someone, while 心細い focuses on feeling vulnerable without support
- 頼りない — unreliable; describes the object that fails to provide reassurance, while 心細い describes the person's emotional state