きつい (kitsui) means “tight,” “demanding,” “strong,” or “harsh,” depending on what it describes. Use it for tight clothes, exhausting work, a strong smell, or sharp words. The context supplies the English equivalent; it does not always imply that the speaker personally feels distressed.
also kitsui / kitsukatta / kitsuku / きつく言う
tight · tough, gruelling · harsh, strong
Sentences
きつい · fit
plain。
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この
この
this; these
demonstrative · attaches to the noun
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靴
くつ ［2］
shoes
noun · no plural marking, so one pair or several
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は
は
as for — the topic
particle · written は, read わ
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少し
すこし ［2］
a little
adverb · politer and flatter than ちょっと
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きつい
きつい ［0］
tight
い-adjective · the literal 'no room' sense
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These shoes are a bit tight.
きつい · a gruelling job
polite。
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この
この
this
demonstrative · pointing at the job in hand
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仕事
しごと ［0］
work; the job
noun · the role and the tasks both
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は
は
as for — the topic
particle · written は, read わ
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体力的に
たいりょくてきに
physically; in stamina terms
体力 ＋ 的 ＋ に · turns a noun into 'in terms of'
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きつい
きつい ［0］
gruelling; hard going
い-adjective · demand exceeding capacity
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です
です
polite copula
copula · い-adjective ＋ です, no だ
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This job is physically demanding.
きつい · too strong a smell
plain。
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彼女
かのじょ ［1］
she; her
pronoun · also girlfriend, depending on context
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の
の
links noun to noun
particle · A の B = B belonging to A
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香水
こうすい ［0］
perfume
noun · 香 fragrance ＋ 水 water
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は
は
as for — the topic
particle · written は, read わ
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ちょっと
ちょっと
a bit
adverb · doing the softening that keeps this from being rude
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きつい
きつい ［0］
too strong
い-adjective · intensity crowding the room
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ね
ね
seeking agreement
particle · invites the listener to share the judgement
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Her perfume is a bit much.
きつく言われた · getting told off
plain past。
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上司
じょうし ［1］
one's boss; a superior
noun · the person above you at work
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に
に
by
particle · marks the agent of the passive
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きつく
きつく
sharply; harshly
adverbial form of きつい · い drops for く
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言われた
いわれた
was told
past passive of 言う · the speaker is on the receiving end
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My boss gave me a sharp talking-to.
きつい性格
plain。
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彼女
かのじょ ［1］
she
pronoun · third person
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は
は
as for — the topic
particle · written は, read わ
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きつい
きつい ［0］
blunt; prickly
い-adjective · predicate here; attributive would be きつい人 · about manner, not cruelty
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けど
けど
but
conjunction · casual; が is the formal one
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いい
いい
good
い-adjective · irregular, since よくない is its negative
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人
ひと ［0］
person
noun · read ひと; じん only in compounds
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だ
だ
plain copula
copula · closes the judgement
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She's blunt, but she's a good person.
スケジュールがきつい
polite。
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今週
こんしゅう ［0］
this week
noun used adverbially · 今 ＋ 週
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の
の
links noun to noun
particle · A の B = B belonging to A
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スケジュール
スケジュール ［2］
schedule
noun · loanword; 予定 is the native alternative
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は
は
as for — the topic
particle · written は, read わ
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かなり
かなり
quite; considerably
adverb · stronger than ちょっと, weaker than 非常に
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きつい
きつい ［0］
tight; more than fits
い-adjective · capacity exceeded, the core sense
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です
です
polite copula
copula · plain form is just きつい
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This week's schedule is really tight.
Forms
Clothes / shoes ＋ が＋きつい
靴がきつい. The literal sense: no room. This is the one meaning where the word is purely factual rather than a complaint.
Job / schedule ＋ が＋きつい
仕事がきつい. Gruelling, physically or in hours. Very common about manual work, training and deadlines.
Smell / drink ＋ が＋きつい
香水がきつい. Too strong. Perfume, cigarettes, spirits — anything whose intensity crowds you out.
きつく＋Verb
きつく言う, きつく縛る. Adverbial form: sharply, tightly. きつく言われた — I got told off — is the phrase you will hear most.
Meaning
きつい is about capacity. Something exceeds the room available: the foot exceeds the shoe, the workload exceeds the week, the scent exceeds the lift. That is why the same adjective handles a waistband and a night shift without feeling like two words.
辛い（つらい）is about the feeling, not the fit. 仕事がきつい says the job demands more than you have; 仕事がつらい says it hurts to keep doing. The first is nearly objective and you can say it about somebody else's job; the second is a confession about your own.
厳しい is deliberate strictness. A teacher, a rule, a standard — someone chose to hold the line. きつい is not chosen by anyone; the schedule is simply too full. Hence 厳しい先生 is a strict teacher and きつい先生 is one whose manner is abrasive.
About people it means blunt, not cruel. きつい人 is someone who says the thing without softening it and does not leave much room to manoeuvre. It is a real criticism, but a mild one — and きつく言われた, I got told off sharply, is the everyday way to report that you were on the receiving end.
Inside the word
きつい is written in kana in practice. You will see キツい in casual writing, where katakana on the stem adds emphasis the way italics do in English — a common trick for adjectives that are being felt rather than described.
Adding め to an adjective stem means “on the ~ side”: きつめ a little tight, 大きめ on the large side, 早め a bit early. Useful in shops — きつめが好きです, I like them snug.
A きつい person leaves no slack: no cushioning before the criticism, no room to save face. That is a manner, not a motive, which is why きついけどいい人 is a perfectly coherent thing to say about someone you like.
Watch out
A teacher with high standards is 厳しい. Calling them きつい says their manner is abrasive, which is a different — and less flattering — claim. Strictness is chosen; きつい is just how it lands.
きついですね to somebody's face about their manner is a real jab. It is at home describing a schedule, a smell or a pair of shoes, and it is gossip when it is about a person — which is where you will mostly hear it.
きつく言う, not きついに言う. い-adjectives make adverbs by swapping い for く; the に pattern belongs to な-adjectives.
Also asked
Tight, tough, harsh, or too strong — depending on what it describes. The single idea underneath is that something exceeds the room available: the foot in the shoe, the work in the week, the perfume in the lift, the criticism in the sentence.
きつい is nearly objective — the job demands more than there is capacity for, and you can say it about somebody else's job. つらい is how it feels from inside, so it is closer to admitting you are struggling.
It is a mild criticism and it is usually said behind their back. It means blunt and prickly rather than cruel, which is why きついけどいい人 — blunt but a good person — is a completely normal thing to say.
I got told off sharply. きつく is the adverbial form and the passive 言われた puts the speaker on the receiving end. 怒られた is the blunter alternative — actually shouted at.
In practice no. Kana is standard, and キツい in katakana turns up in casual writing for emphasis. Dictionary spellings exist but you will almost never meet them in the wild.
ちょっときついです, or きつめです if you mean snug rather than uncomfortable. For the opposite, ゆるい is loose and ゆるめ is on the loose side.
References
Shogakukan dictionaries via Kotobank: %25E3%2581%258D%25E3%2581%25A4%25E3%2581%2584 — tightness, severity, strength, and hardship
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