This article will give you all of the knowledge you need on the Japanese word mada, including its Japanese definition and translation, example sentences, related expressions and more!
Contents
What does mada mean?
The Japanese word mada (未だ、まだ) means still or not yet. As a general rule, mada translates as still when the sentence is positive and as not yet when the sentence is negative.
Here is an example. The first sentence is positive and the second one is negative.
まだ忙しいです。
Mada isogashii desu.
まだいそがしいです。
I’m still busy.
まだ忙しくないです。
Mada isogashikunai desu.
まだいそがしくないです。
I’m not busy yet.
Below, we take a look at some more examples of both meanings of mada.
To make it easier for you, I have written each sentence in full Japanese kanji on the first line, followed by roman letters (romaji), and hiragana, with the English meaning coming last.
Mada meaning 1: Still
まだ好だよ！
Mada suki da yo!
まだすきだよ！
I still love you!
指はまだすごく痛い。
Yubi wa mada sugoku itai.
ゆびはまだすごくいたい。
My finger still hurts a lot.
イタリア人の友達はまだ日本にいるの？
Itaria jin no tomodachi wa mada nihon ni iru no?
いたりあじんのともだちはまだにほんにいるの？
Is your Italian friend still in Japan?
まだよく分かりません。
Mada yoku wakarimasen.
まだよくわかりません。
I still don’t really understand (note: this one is an exception to the rule).
Mada meaning 2: Not yet
その宿題はまだやっていない。
Sono shukudai wa mada yatteinai.
そのしゅくだいはまだやっていない。
I haven’t done that homework yet.
彼女はまだ来ない。大丈夫かな？
Kanojo wa mada konai. Daijyoubu kana?
かのじょはまだこない。だいじょうぶかな？
She didn’t come yet. I wonder if she’s okay.
春にはなったけど、まだ暖かくないです。
Haru ni wa natta kedo, mada atatakaku nai desu.
はるにはなったけど、まだあたたかくないです。
It’s now spring, but it isn’t warm yet.
What does mada mada mean?
Mada mada (まだまだ) is a humble way of saying you’re not yet good at something. The classic example is for English ability:
私は英語がまだまだよく話せません。
Watashi wa eigo ga mada mada yoku hanasemasen.
わたしはえいごがまだまだよくはなせません。
I can’t speak English well yet.
As you may know, Japanese people tend to be quite modest and like to play down their own achievements. Call it a generalization if you like, but this is a cultural thing.
Mada mada is therefore a common phrase in Japanese that you will hear even when people are good at something (and know it!). I found this out to my cost when my old boss (in his 60s at the time) said he wasn’t very good at tennis!
The lesson here is that you shouldn’t always accept what Japanese people say at the surface level. Sometimes they are just being modest. Here are some more example sentences.
僕なんてまだまだですよ。
Boku nante mada mada desu yo.
ぼくなんてまだまだですよ。
I’m still not good at all.
まだまだですが、物理学の勉強は楽しいです。
Mada mada desu ga, butsurigaku no benkyou wa tanoshii desu.
まだまだですが、ぶつりがくのべんきょうはたのしいです。
I’m still not very good at it, but I do enjoy studying physics.
私にそんな事はまだまだできない。
Watashi ni sonna koto wa mada mada dekinai.
わたしにそんなことはまだまだできない。
I’m still not capable of that kind of thing.
Bearing this in mind, you may want to add mada mada (and a little modesty) to your repertoire when speaking Japanese. Have at it!
Rohan's favorite resource for learning Japanese is JapanesePod101, one of the best tools for getting started with the language. Sign up for a free lifetime account here.
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