悪賢(わるがしこ)い

わるがしこい
i-adjective
cunning; crafty; sly
Conjugation
AffirmativeNegative
Present悪賢(わるがしこ)い悪賢(わるがしこ)くない
Past悪賢(わるがしこ)かった悪賢(わるがしこ)くなかった
て form悪賢(わるがしこ)くて悪賢(わるがしこ)くなくて
Adverbial悪賢(わるがしこ)く—
Conditional ば悪賢(わるがしこ)ければ悪賢(わるがしこ)くなければ
Conditional たら悪賢(わるがしこ)かったら悪賢(わるがしこ)くなかったら
1. cunning; crafty; sly
Having or showing shrewdness used for dishonest or selfish purposes. Clever in a morally questionable way.
悪賢(わるがしこ)いやり方(かた)だ。
That's a crafty way of doing things.
あの男(おとこ)は悪賢(わるがしこ)くて信用(しんよう)できない。
That man is cunning and can't be trusted.
悪賢(わるがしこ)い商人(しょうにん)に騙(だま)されて大金(たいきん)を失(うしな)った。
I was tricked by a cunning merchant and lost a large sum of money.
子(こ)どもながら悪賢(わるがしこ)くて、大人(おとな)を上手(うま)く言(い)いくるめる。
Despite being a child, they are sly and skillfully talk adults into things.

A compound adjective formed from 悪(わる)い (bad) + 賢(かしこ)い (clever/smart). Describes intelligence used for dishonest or self-serving ends. Always negative — unlike 賢(かしこ)い alone, which is positive.

ETYMOLOGY:
Combines 悪(わる) (bad, evil) with 賢(かしこ)い (wise, clever). The rendaku voicing changes かしこい to がしこい.

COMMON COLLOCATIONS:

  • 悪賢(わるがしこ)いやり方(かた): a cunning method
  • 悪賢(わるがしこ)い人(ひと): a sly person
  • 悪賢(わるがしこ)い商売(しょうばい): shady business dealings

SIMILAR WORDS:

  • ずる賢(がしこ)い: cunning, wily (very close synonym, slightly more colloquial)
  • 狡猾(こうかつ)な: crafty, cunning (more formal and literary)
  • 抜(ぬ)け目(め)がない: shrewd, not missing a trick (can be neutral or positive)
general
Added 2026.3.31 3:22
20500/20841_warugashikoi