Japanese word

しまった

Pronunciation

Romajishimatta

Meaning

  • interjectionoops

Example

しまった！宿題を忘れました。shi ma tta shuku dai o wasu re ma shi ta

Oops! I forgot my homework.

Illustration for しまった (oops)

More examples

しまった、約束の時間を間違えました。shi ma tta yaku soku no ji kan o ma chiga e ma shi ta

Oops, I got the meeting time wrong.

Core concept

Marks the moment when the speaker notices a mistake and reacts with immediate regret.

Similar words

あっa: A brief exclamation used when a new fact or mistake suddenly comes to the speaker's attention.
あちゃーachā: A colloquial exclamation expressing regret or dismay about an unwanted result.
おっとotto: A brief exclamation used when the speaker catches a problem or reacts to an unexpected event.

Definition in Japanese

思いがけない失敗や不都合に気づいたとき、残念に思う気持ちを表して発する言葉。omo i ga ke na i ship pai ya fu tsu gō ni ki zu i ta to ki zan nen ni omo u ki mo chi o arawa shi te has su ru koto ba

Word origin

The interjection しまった (shimatta, "it is finished") is the past form of 仕舞う (shimau, "to finish or put away"), whose sense of completion came to express regret over a mistake.

Usage tips

  • The short cry しまった (shimatta) can stand alone in conversation and is often followed by the speaker's account of what went wrong.

Other meanings

  • darn itinterjection
  • oh nointerjection

Word lists with this word