忌(い)まわしい

いまわしい

i-adjective

abominable; detestable; ominous; unlucky

Conjugation

	Affirmative	Negative
Present	忌(い)まわしい	忌(い)まわしくない
Past	忌(い)まわしかった	忌(い)まわしくなかった
て form	忌(い)まわしくて	忌(い)まわしくなくて
Adverbial	忌(い)まわしく	—
Conditional ば	忌(い)まわしければ	忌(い)まわしくなければ
Conditional たら	忌(い)まわしかったら	忌(い)まわしくなかったら

1. abominable; detestable; repugnant; revolting

Describing something so unpleasant or morally repulsive that it provokes strong feelings of disgust or hatred. Used for events, memories, or situations that one wishes to forget.

忌(い)まわしい記憶(きおく)。

A detestable memory.

忌(い)まわしい事件(じけん)が起(お)きた。

A horrible incident occurred.

あの忌(い)まわしい過去(かこ)を思(おも)い出(だ)したくない。

I don't want to recall that abominable past.

2. ominous; unlucky; inauspicious

Describing something that is considered a bad omen or brings bad luck. An older usage that retains the original meaning of the word.

忌(い)まわしい数字(すうじ)。

An unlucky number.

忌(い)まわしい前兆(ぜんちょう)を感(かん)じた。

I sensed an ominous foreboding.

この土地(とち)には忌(い)まわしい言(い)い伝(つた)えがある。

There is an inauspicious legend associated with this land.

From the verb 忌(い)む (to avoid, to shun as taboo), with the suffix -わしい indicating a quality that evokes the base verb's meaning. Carries a strong emotional weight — heavier than simply "unpleasant" or "bad."

Usage

Primarily used as a modifier before nouns. Sense 1 (detestable) is more common in modern Japanese, while sense 2 (ominous) retains a literary or traditional flavor. Often appears in news reporting about crimes or disasters.

Common collocations

忌(い)まわしい記憶(きおく) — detestable memory
忌(い)まわしい過去(かこ) — abominable past
忌(い)まわしい事件(じけん) — horrible incident
忌(い)まわしい出来事(できごと) — dreadful event

Similar words

恐(おそ)ろしい — frightening, terrifying (focuses on fear rather than moral revulsion)
憎(にく)い — hateful (directed at a specific person or thing one resents)
不吉(ふきつ)な — ominous, ill-omened (closer to sense 2, but more commonly used in everyday speech)

Related Words

Compare: 恐(おそ)ろしい (frightening, terrifying)

Compare: 憎(にく)い (hateful)

Compare: 不吉(ふきつ) (ominous, ill-omened)

Compare: おぞましい (disgusting)

general

Added 2026.3.29 5:08 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01

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