top of page
Search

【性格を表す英語】とっさに言えたら「かっこいい」英熟語10選!PART 3

Updated: Mar 2, 2022



Describing someone's personality helps build up a mental picture of what kind of person they are. I'm going to teach you 10 commonly-used idioms to perfectly describe your friend, family member or colleague.



 


① A Bossy Boots


やたら威張り散らす人

仕切り屋

傲慢な

A Bossy boots is kind of a cute way of saying someone who likes telling people what to do. If you use this expression you can say it with a smile on your face. It’s not so serious.


- Don’t be such a bossy boots! You’re always telling me what to do.

Maybe you could say this to a co-worker or a partner without causing any bad feeling.


- My daughter’s classmates think she is a bossy boots. She’s like an assistant teacher.

This expression is playful and often used for kids.






 


② A Creep


気味悪いやつ

キモいヤツ

This word is especially used by women who find a particular man threatening

by the things he does, the things he says or just by the way he looks at her.


- I was in a bar last night and and a guy kept touching me. What a creep!

This is the perfect word for a man who is harassing a woman. You have to say, “Get your hands off me - you creep!”


- My girlfriend met a creep on the train last night. She said he stood way too close to her.

Sadly, there are a lot of creeps on the trains in Tokyo and other big cities.








 


③ The Golden Boy


期待の星

成功者

自慢の息子

A golden boy is like the up and coming young star. We have so many hopes and dreams for them and everyone loves them. As we use the word ‘boy,’ it’s usually used for younger people.

We can also use the expression ‘Golden Girl’


- Shohei Ohtani is the golden boy of Major League Baseball and is loved all over the world.

He’s still pretty young and he fits this expression perfectly


- William is our division’s golden boy. He’s been the top salesman for the past 5 months in a row.

I guess he must have made a lot of money for the company.





 



④ Have a Screw Loose


頭のおかしい人

気違い

頭のねじが緩んでいる人

Someone who has a screw loose is basically crazy and I mean really crazy. Almost to the point where we think they have some kind of mental problem.



- You have to have a screw loose to think that global warming is a conspiracy.

Yes, with the crazy weather we’ve been getting in recent years - it’s definitely for real!


- I think Sarah’s got a screw loose. She’s giving up her job as a doctor to be a YouTuber!

You’ve definitely got to have a screw loose to become a YouTuber - completely agree with that one.





 


⑤ A Moaning Minnie


愚痴ばかり言っている人

The verb ‘moan’ means to complain a lot about little things.

The name ‘moaning minnie’ comes from a piece of army equipment used by the German army in World War 2. It made a terrible moaning sound when fired, just like someone complaining.



(A) Are we nearly there yet? This car ride is taking forever!

(B) Oh stop being such a moaning minnie. Be quiet and enjoy the ride!

Yes, with the crazy weather we’ve been getting in recent years - it’s definitely for real!


- All you do is whine and complain. If you weren’t such a moaning minnie, you’d have more friends.

Do you have a moaning minnie in your life?





 


⑥ A Bigmouth


口が軽い

秘密を守れない

おしゃべり

You can use this in 2 ways by saying,


"He is a bigmouth."


Or you can say


"He has a big mouth."


They both mean the same thing - somebody who can’t keep a secret,

It’s very different from the Japanese meaning of 'bigmouth.'


In English we would say,


‘He talks big’

.

Like a boxer before a big fight



- Don’t tell Junko about my engagement. I want to keep it a secret and she’s such a bigmouth.

So that means, never tell Junko your secrets.


- My brother opened his big mouth and told them the whole story, warts and all.

Warts and all means all the dirty details.





 


⑦ A Tearaway


不良少年

ヤンキー

A tearaway can be used for young people, both boys and girls, who are basically doing bad things in society. They often commit crimes or are in a gang. They have 'torn away' from society.



- My son’s a bit of a tearaway. He’s been in and out of juvenile detention centers all his life.

A juvenile detention center is like a prison for young people.


Some of the most successful people in society were tearaways when they were young.

I guess they learned how to survive in a tough world.





 


⑧ A Wimp


弱虫

意気地なし

気が小さい

This expression is usually used for men. A wimp is the quiet guy in the corner who's not brave and not so cool. It can also be used for talking about not being physically strong.

You may have heard of the Best selling children's book,


"Diary of a Wimpy Kid"


The Japanese title is グレッグのダメ日記


It was also a Hollywood movie.



- Don’t be such a wimp! You should stand up to your bullies and fight back.

Unfortunately, bullies often target the wimpy kid in the class.


- Oh, I feel like a complete wimp. I offered to carry her suitcase, but I couldn’t even pick it up.

Looks like someone has to hit the gym.





 


⑨ A Slave Driver


人使いが荒い人

部下をこき使うマネージャ

A Slave Driver is a manager who makes his staff work unreasonably hard. This is a useful phrase for talking about a terrible boss.



- My boss makes us work on the weekend. What a slave driver!

I guess most people expect to have the weekend off.


- My wife is such a slave driver! She makes me work so hard at home.

As long as it’s fair, there’s nothing wrong with a bit of hard work, right?





 


⑩ A Scrooge


守銭奴

ケチ

Dickens作 A Christmas Carol の主人公の名前より

The name Scrooge comes from the famous character in the Charles Dickens novella,

“A Christmas Carol.” He hates spending money.

Even although it’s a name, we don’t usually use a capital letter ’S.'



- Don’t be such an old scrooge! Come to the concert with us, the tickets are only 9,000 Yen!

I guess concert tickets are pretty pricey, but you’ll have such an awesome time.


- My scrooge of a wife won’t let me buy new golf clubs!

Oh well. Maybe he can get some used ones on Mercari.





 


Conclusion


These 10 idioms are widely used by native speakers. Even if you can only remember 3 or 4 of them, that'll help you on your journey towards becoming an excellent English speaker. Please watch the VIDEO LESSON on YouTube!


Thanks for reading!


threatening

脅迫的な

a conspiracy

陰謀・謀略・裏切りや悪事を陰で計画すること 

moan

愚痴をこぼす・不平を言う・ブツブツ言う

whine

めそめそと愚痴を言う

complain

不満を言う

warts and all

ありのままの・長所も短所も含めて

​commit crimes

罪を犯す

​Juvenile Detention Center (JDC)

少年拘置所

a bully

​いじめっ子

unreasonably

​不当に・正当な理由なく・不合理に

​pricey

値段の高い





427 views0 comments

Recent Posts

See All

Comments


bottom of page