auxiliary N1 uncommon casualwritten
〜じみた — tinged with ~
〜じみた ・ じみた
Meaning
- smacking of / tinged with ~ — colored by an unbecoming or excessive quality
Key sentence
そんな子供じみた言い訳はやめなさい。
Stop making such childish excuses.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | Noun + じみた + 名詞 (from the verb 〜じみる) | 子供じみた、芝居じみた |
Examples
彼の説明は、どこか芝居じみていた。
His explanation was somehow theatrical (overacted).
一人暮らしが長く、すっかり所帯じみてしまった。
After living alone so long, he's taken on a worn, domesticated air.
When you can't use it
- Negative only — the noun names something the subject should not resemble. You can't use it to praise (×天才じみた for genuine brilliance).
Easily confused with
〜っぽい っぽい is neutral 'resembling / -ish' (子どもっぽい can be merely 'youthful'); じみた is sharply negative — the quality is unbecoming (子供じみた = 'immature, embarrassingly childish'). 〜めく めく adds a neutral/atmospheric touch (謎めく 'mysterious'); じみた taints the noun with an unflattering quality. 〜ぶる ぶる = a deliberate pose someone strikes (偉ぶる); じみた = an unflattering quality that simply shows in someone, whether they intend it or not.
Notes
- From 〜染みる 'to be stained with'; the staining nuance is what makes it negative.
See 〜じみた in real sentences
Jengo shows 〜じみた the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.
Study it in JengoSources Compiled from published Japanese grammar references.