Untranslatable wordSocial
Japanese
Amae
Meaning: The comfortable feeling of depending on another's goodwill — leaning into someone's indulgence, as a child does with a parent.
Literally: Sweet dependency
Origin: Japanese 甘え; theorised by psychiatrist Takeo Doi as core to Japanese psychology.
More Japanese untranslatable words
- Shinrin-yoku Immersing yourself in the atmosphere of a forest — soaking up its calm through all your s…
- Boketto Staring off into the distance with your mind pleasantly empty, thinking of nothing at all.
- Komorebi The dappled light that filters through leaves and scatters across the ground.
- Wabi-sabi Finding beauty in imperfection, impermanence, and the worn or incomplete.
- Tsundoku Buying books and letting them pile up unread — a habit, not a crime.
- Mono no aware A bittersweet awareness of impermanence — the gentle sadness and appreciation that arise…
Explore another collection: Idioms
Colorful expressions from dozens of languages, with their word-for-word translations.
- 目くそ鼻くそを笑う (Mekuso hanakuso o warau) Mocking someone else's faults without noticing you have the same ones.
- 労多くして功少なし (Rō ōkushite kō sukunashi) A lot of effort for very little result.
- 猫の手も借りたい (Neko no te mo karitai) I'm so busy I'll take help from anyone.
Keep exploring