Three jobs for one particle
Kurai comes from a word meaning rank or level, and every use still carries that idea: it marks a level on a scale. With a number, the level is a rough amount. With a clause, the level is how far something goes. With sore or a noun plus wa, the level is set deliberately low, which gives the sense of at least or only that much.
Once you see the scale, the three uses stop feeling unrelated. Here they are side by side before we look at each in detail.
| Use | Pattern | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Approximation | number or amount + ぐらい | 十分ぐらい待ちました。 | I waited about ten minutes. |
| Extent | clause + くらい | 泣きたいくらいうれしい。 | I'm so happy I could cry. |
| Minimum | それくらい or noun + くらい | 電話くらいしてよ。 | At least give me a call. |
About and around: approximate amounts
The most common use is attaching gurai or kurai to a number, a duration, a price or a distance to mean about or roughly. It softens precise numbers and is very natural when you are estimating. In questions, dono kurai and dore kurai ask how much or how long.
It also follows kore, sore and are, giving about this much. With a gesture, kore gurai is how people show sizes with their hands.
| Japanese | Romaji | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 駅まで歩いて十分ぐらいです。 | Eki made aruite juppun gurai desu. | It's about ten minutes' walk to the station. |
| どのくらいかかりますか。 | Dono kurai kakarimasu ka. | How long does it take? |
| 日本に来て一年ぐらいになります。 | Nihon ni kite ichinen gurai ni narimasu. | It's been about a year since I came to Japan. |
| 三千円ぐらいのお土産を探しています。 | Sanzen-en gurai no omiyage o sagashite imasu. | I'm looking for a souvenir for around three thousand yen. |
| これぐらいの箱です。 | Kore gurai no hako desu. | It's a box about this big. |
| 二十人ぐらい来ると思います。 | Nijūnin gurai kuru to omoimasu. | I think about twenty people will come. |
| どれくらい日本語を勉強していますか。 | Dore kurai nihongo o benkyō shite imasu ka. | How long have you been studying Japanese? |
Gurai versus goro for time
English uses about for both a length of time and a point in time. Japanese standard usage splits them. Goro attaches to points: clock times, dates and periods such as the end of the month. Gurai attaches to durations and amounts. In casual speech, many people also say sanji gurai for about three o'clock, and you will hear it often, but goro is the safer choice in polite speech.
Goro can take ni, as in sanji goro ni, or drop it, as in sanji goro. Both are common. In casual speech you will also hear sanji gurai ni, but in careful speech keep gurai for amounts and goro for times.
| Japanese | Romaji | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 七時ごろに着きます。 | Shichiji goro ni tsukimasu. | I'll arrive around seven. |
| 二時間ぐらい遅れるそうです。 | Nijikan gurai okureru sō desu. | Apparently it will be about two hours late. |
| 何時ごろがいいですか。 | Nanji goro ga ii desu ka. | Around what time suits you? |
| You mean | Standard form | Casual alternative | Not natural |
|---|---|---|---|
| About three o'clock | 三時ごろ | 三時ぐらい | 三時間ぐらい (means three hours) |
| For about three hours | 三時間ぐらい | 三時間くらい | 三時間ごろ |
| For about two weeks | 二週間ぐらい | 二週間くらい | 二週間ごろ |
| About what time? | 何時ごろ | 何時ぐらい | 何時間ごろ |
| About how long? | どのくらい | どれぐらい | どのごろ |
So much that: describing extent
Attach kurai to a plain-form clause and it describes how far a state goes, measured by a comparison: so tired I could fall asleep standing, so delicious I could not stop. The clause is usually an exaggeration or a vivid image, and the adjective or verb that follows is the real point.
Kurai no before a noun works the same way: odoroku kurai no nedan, a price that makes you gasp. People use this constantly in reviews, stories and complaints.
| Japanese | Romaji | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 顔が赤くなるくらい恥ずかしかった。 | Kao ga akaku naru kurai hazukashikatta. | I was so embarrassed my face went red. |
| 毎日食べたいくらい好きです。 | Mainichi tabetai kurai suki desu. | I love it so much I could eat it every day. |
| 声が出ないくらい笑った。 | Koe ga denai kurai waratta. | I laughed so hard no sound came out. |
| 寒くて、手が動かないくらいでした。 | Samukute, te ga ugokanai kurai deshita. | It was so cold my hands would barely move. |
| Clause + kurai | Followed by | Full sentence | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 死ぬくらい | 忙しい | 死ぬくらい忙しい。 | So busy I could die |
| 泣きたいくらい | うれしい | 泣きたいくらいうれしかった。 | I was so happy I wanted to cry |
| 信じられないくらい | 安い | 信じられないくらい安い。 | Unbelievably cheap |
| 立っていられないくらい | 疲れた | 立っていられないくらい疲れた。 | So tired I could barely stand |
| びっくりするくらいの | 人 | びっくりするくらいの人だった。 | There was a startling number of people |
At least and only that much: sore kurai
The third use sets the level low on purpose. Sore kurai, kore kurai and noun + kurai mean just that much, and the tone depends on who the task belongs to. About your own trouble, it is modest reassurance: kore kurai daijōbu, this much is nothing. About someone else's duty, it becomes at least or even: aisatsu kurai shinasai, at least say hello.
In requests the minimum use can be gently scolding, which is why it appears so often between family members and close friends. With people above you, avoid using it about their actions.
| Japanese | Romaji | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| これくらい大丈夫ですよ。 | Kore kurai daijōbu desu yo. | This much is no trouble at all. |
| それくらい自分でやって。 | Sore kurai jibun de yatte. | Do that much yourself, at least. |
| 遅れるなら、連絡くらいしてよ。 | Okureru nara, renraku kurai shite yo. | If you're going to be late, at least let me know. |
| 挨拶ぐらいしなさい。 | Aisatsu gurai shinasai. | Say hello, at least. |
| お茶くらい飲んでいってください。 | O-cha kurai nonde itte kudasai. | At least stay for a cup of tea. |
| 簡単な料理くらいなら作れます。 | Kantan na ryōri kurai nara tsukuremasu. | I can manage simple dishes, at least. |
Kurai nara: rather than going that far
Clause + kurai nara sets up something undesirable and then says what would be better. It often ends with hō ga ii or hō ga mashi, it is better or it is less bad. The English is if you are going to do that, you might as well, or rather than that.
It is a strong, opinionated pattern, so it suits casual conversation and advice between friends more than polite requests.
| Japanese | Romaji | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 途中でやめるくらいなら、最初からやらないほうがいい。 | Tochū de yameru kurai nara, saisho kara yaranai hō ga ii. | If you're going to quit halfway, better not to start. |
| 並ぶくらいなら、別の店に行こう。 | Narabu kurai nara, betsu no mise ni ikō. | Rather than queue, let's go somewhere else. |
| タクシーに乗るくらいなら歩きます。 | Takushī ni noru kurai nara arukimasu. | I'd rather walk than take a taxi. |
Kurai versus hodo
Hodo overlaps with kurai in the extent use: shinu hodo isogashii and shinu kurai isogashii both work, with hodo sounding a touch stronger and more written. The two part ways elsewhere. Hodo is required in negative comparisons such as kyonen hodo samuku nai, not as cold as last year, and it appears in the more, the more pattern covered in the ba hodo guide. Kurai is the one for minimising, as in sore kurai.
Both appear in X kurai or X hodo ... wa nai, meaning there is nothing as ... as X. In speech, kurai is slightly more common here.
| Meaning | Kurai | Hodo | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| About ten people | 十人ぐらい | 十人ほど | Hodo sounds polite or formal |
| So busy I could die | 死ぬくらい忙しい | 死ぬほど忙しい | Both natural |
| Not as cold as last year | Not natural | 去年ほど寒くない | Use hodo |
| Nobody is as kind as him | 彼くらい優しい人はいない | 彼ほど優しい人はいない | Both natural |
| At least do that much | それくらいやって | Not used this way | Use kurai |
Jūnin hodo, about ten people, is a common polite way to give an approximate number in business and announcements. In a shop or at work, go-fun hodo o-machi kudasai, please wait about five minutes, is standard staff Japanese.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Using goro for durations: say sanjikan gurai, not sanjikan goro.
- Using kurai in a negative comparison: kyonen hodo samuku nai, not kyonen kurai samuku nai.
- Attaching kurai to a na-adjective stem: say shizuka na kurai, not shizuka kurai, when you mean to the extent it is quiet.
- Using sore kurai about a superior's work: it minimises their effort and can sound dismissive.
- Forgetting no before a noun: sanzen-en gurai no omiyage, not sanzen-en gurai omiyage.
- Worrying about kurai or gurai: pick one and keep going; both are correct in almost every case.