いい

Meaning in English

good, nice, okay

Sentence

Related sentences

N4 分からないところがあったらあとで聞いてもいいですか Wakaranai tokoro ga attara ato de kiite mo ii desu ka If there is something I do not understand may I ask later N4 道に迷ったら、駅の近くにいる人に聞けばいいよ Michi ni mayottara, eki no chikaku ni iru hito ni kikeba ii yo If you get lost, you can ask someone near the station N4 この仕事が終わったら、少し休んでもいいですか Kono shigoto ga owattara, sukoshi yasunde mo ii desu ka When this work is finished, may I rest a little N4 失敗したとしても、何もしないよりはいいと思う Shippai shita to shite mo, nani mo shinai yori wa ii to omou Even if it fails, I think it is better than doing nothing N4 昨日より少し涼しくなったから外で勉強してもいいかも Kinou yori sukoshi suzushiku natta kara soto de benkyou shite mo ii kamo Since it became cooler than yesterday maybe studying outside is good N4 新しい単語を覚えたらすぐ例文を作るようにするといいよ Atarashii tango o oboetara sugu reibun o tsukuru you ni suru to ii yo When you learn new words it is good to make sentences right away N4 最近は前より早く起きられるようになって少し気分がいい Saikin wa mae yori hayaku okirareru you ni natte sukoshi kibun ga ii Recently I became able to wake earlier than before and feel better N4 先生に分からないところは何度でも聞いていいと言われた Sensei ni wakaranai tokoro wa nando demo kiite ii to iwareta The teacher said I can ask as many times as needed when I do not understand N4 会議の前に必要な資料をコピーしておいたほうがいいと思う Kaigi no mae ni hitsuyou na shiryou o kopii shite oita hou ga ii to omou I think it is better to copy necessary materials before the meeting

Dictionary

Word context

What it means

いい directly denotes a basic positive adjective used to express approval, suitability, or acceptance in everyday Japanese; it functions as a quick, general-quality judgment about people, objects, actions, or situations and signals that something is acceptable or desirable.

Main meanings

As an auxiliary after a verb's -te form (〜ていい): marks permission or that an action is allowed.
With comparison constructions (〜ほうがいい): expresses a recommendation or that one option is preferable.
Standalone interjection: used to praise or show delight about an object, event, or appearance.
Attributive use before nouns to qualify them as suitable or desirable in context.
Component in fixed expressions where its nuance changes (for example, compounds that convey moderation or irritation).

How to use it

Primarily a spoken, everyday adjective found in casual conversation, advertising, reviews, and service interactions; polite speech typically adds desu for formality, writing may prefer the alternate orthography or formal variant, and learners should note the adjective's irregular conjugation pattern in past and negative forms.

Variants and close terms

良い (yoi) — more formal/standard alternative to いい (used in polite or written contexts).
ええ (ee) — regional/colloquial variant (common in Kansai speech) used as an affirmative or casual positive.
悪い (warui) — antonym meaning negative quality or unsatisfactory.

Etymology

いい is an irregular phonetic development of よい (yoi), which itself traces back to older forms like Old Japanese yoshi; historical sound changes and vowel coalescence regularized the doubled-vowel pronunciation in modern colloquial speech.

Origin

The descriptive concept appears in classical Japanese under related forms (e.g., yoshi) and by the Early Modern/Edo period the spoken doubled-vowel form had become common in everyday language; written use later stabilized with kana and kanji conventions reflecting both forms in different registers.

Word class

adjective (i-adjective / 形容詞), irregular

Grammar

Related grammar structures

N5 〜てもいい te mo ii Indicates permission, equivalent to may do, also expresses acceptance depending on context