Japanese word

等しい

Pronunciation

Romajihitoshii

Meaning

  • i-adjectiveequal

Example

二本の線の長さは等しいです。ni pon no sen no naga sa wa hito shi i de su

The two lines are equal in length.

Illustration for 等しい (equal)

More examples

三と三は等しいです。san to san wa hito shi i de su

Three and three are equal.

この二つの箱は、形は違いますが、重さは等しいです。ko no futa tsu no bako wa katachi wa chiga i ma su ga omo sa wa hito shi i de su

These two boxes have different shapes, but they weigh the same.

Core concept

Describes two or more things as matching in value, degree, amount, or condition rather than merely resembling each other.

Common phrases

  • 等しい長さhito shi i naga sa

    equal length

  • 等しい数hito shi i kazu

    equal numbers

  • 等しい価値hito shi i ka chi

    equal value

Definition in Japanese

二つ以上の物事の数量・程度・価値などに差がなく、同じである。futa tsu i jō no mono goto no sū ryō tei do ka chi na do ni sa ga na ku ona ji de a ru

Word origin

The native adjective 等しい (hitoshii) comes from 等し (hitoshi), meaning "equal" or "the same", followed by the adjective ending い (i).

Usage tips

  • 等しい (hitoshii) is common in mathematics and formal explanations, while 同じ (onaji) is more usual in everyday speech for the general sense of "the same".

Other meanings

  • the samei-adjective

Opposites

Related words

  • 等しさhitoshisaequalitynoun

Word lists with this word