おいしい (oishii), also written 美味しい, means tasty or delicious. Use おいしかった for a meal you have eaten and おいしそう when it looks appetizing. うまい can also mean tasty, but おいしい is generally the more polite or refined choice.
forms oishikatta / oishisou / おいしく / うまい
delicious · tasty · good
Sentences
6 sentences, word by word
〜は美味しい · the plain verdict
plain
。
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この
この
this ＋ noun
determiner · needs a noun after it; これ stands alone
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ケーキ
ケーキ ［1］
cake
noun · katakana loan from English
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は
は
as for — the topic
particle · written は, read わ
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美味しい
おいしい ［0,3］
delicious
い-adjective · usually written in kana; the kanji is a jukujikun
美味しいN5delicious — write it in kana
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ね
ね
isn't it — shared reaction
particle · invites agreement rather than announcing
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This cake is delicious.
おいしかった · the end of the meal
polite past
。。
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本当に
ほんとうに ［0］
really; truly
adverb · 本当 ＋ に, intensifying what follows
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おいしかった
おいしかった
was delicious
past of おいしい · the い becomes かった, as every い-adjective does
美味しいN5past: おいしかった
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です
です
polite ending
copula · です after the past form, never でした
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ごちそうさま
ごちそうさま
thank you for the meal
set phrase · closes a meal, and pairs with いただきます at the start
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That was really delicious. Thank you for the meal.
おいしそう · before you taste it
plain
、！
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わあ
わあ
wow
interjection · spontaneous delight
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おいしそう
おいしそう
looks delicious
おいし ＋ そう · the final い drops; a guess from appearance, not a verdict
美味しいN5おいしそう = looks good
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Wow, that looks delicious.
おいしく · the adverb
polite
。
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ご飯
ごはん ［1］
rice; a meal
noun · cooked rice, and by extension the whole meal
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を
を
marks the direct object
particle · pronounced お
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おいしく
おいしく
tastily; so it tastes good
adverbial form · い becomes く in front of a verb
美味しいN5adverb: おいしく
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炊く
たく ［0］
cook — of rice specifically
verb · 炊く is for rice and grains; 作る would be too general
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方法
ほうほう ［0］
method; way
noun · the thing being asked about
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は
は
as for — the topic
particle · written は, read わ
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何
なん ［1］
what
interrogative · なん because です follows
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です
です
is — polite
copula · polite frame for the question
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か
か
question marker
particle · closes the question
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How can I cook rice so it tastes good?
おいしくない · the negative
plain
、。
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これ
これ ［1］
this one
pronoun · the thing near the speaker
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おいしくない
おいしくない
isn't tasty
negative of おいしい · built on the adverbial く, not on the plain form
美味しいN5negative: おいしくない
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わけ
わけ
it's not that; it isn't the case
noun · わけじゃない softens a flat negative into a hedge
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じゃない
じゃない
isn't
contracted ではない · negating the わけ, not the adjective
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けど
けど
but — trailing off
particle · leaves the real opinion unsaid, which is the point
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It isn't that this is bad, exactly...
うまい · the rougher twin
plain
、。
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この
この
this ＋ noun
determiner · points at what is in front of you
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ラーメン
ラーメン
ramen
noun · katakana, from Chinese 拉麺
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マジ
マジ
seriously (slang)
adverb · from 真面目; casual, and young-leaning
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うまい
うまい ［2］
tasty (rough)
い-adjective · blunter than おいしい, male-leaning, also means skilful
うまいN4rougher than おいしい
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This ramen is seriously good.
Forms
What forms does 美味しい take?
Noun ＋ は/が＋おいしい
The plain verdict: このケーキはおいしい. Polite おいしいです — an い-adjective takes です directly, and never だ.
おいしかっ＋た
Was delicious. The い becomes かった, exactly as in 高かった and 楽しかった. Polite: おいしかったです, with です after the past, not でした.
おいし＋そう
Looks delicious. The final い drops before そう. This is the right thing to say when a dish arrives and you have not tasted it.
おいしく＋verb / ない
おいしく作る cook it well, おいしくない not tasty, おいしくなる get tastier. The adverbial く, and the negative is built on it.
Meaning
おいしい vs うまい vs 美味 — and when to say which
おいしい is the neutral word and it is safe everywhere: any age, any gender, any table. Write it in kana. The kanji 美味しい is a jukujikun — the characters were fitted to a word that already existed, so you cannot read it out of them, and it appears mostly on menus and signage.
うまい is not simply the casual version. It is blunter, it leans male, and in careful or mixed company it can read as coarse. It also carries a second sense entirely — skilful: 字がうまい has good handwriting, うまくいった went well. やばい now competes with both among younger speakers.
おいしそう is the one people forget.おいしい asserts a taste you have experienced; before the first bite you have not, so the honest form is おいしそう. Getting this right is a small thing that sounds markedly more native than getting it wrong.
The past tense does most of the social work. A meal is closed with おいしかったです and ごちそうさまでした — that pairing is close to obligatory when someone has cooked for you or paid. Note おいしかったです, never おいしいでした: an い-adjective carries its own tense and the です stays flat.
Inside the word
美味しい — characters fitted to a word that was already there
美味 — a jukujikun, not a spelling
美 beautiful and 味 taste were assigned to おいしい because they mean the right thing, not because they sound like it — you cannot get おい out of 美 by any reading. Written Japanese uses the kana; the kanji lives on menus.
Where おいしい came from
It began as court women's language in the Muromachi period — いしい, meaning excellent, with a polite お on the front that never came off again. That origin is why it reads as the refined option and うまい, an ordinary old adjective, reads as the blunt one.
おいしい — accent ［0］ or ［3］
The table accepts both. ［0］ is flat with no fall; ［3］ drops after the second い — you will hear both, and neither is a mistake. うまい is ［2］. In おいしかった the accent moves onto the かっ.
Watch out
Where 美味しい goes wrong
Saying おいしいでした
The commonest い-adjective error in the language. い-adjectives carry their own tense: the past is おいしかった, and です is added after it unchanged — おいしかったです. でした belongs to nouns and な-adjectives.
Saying おいしい before tasting it
When the food arrives, the form is おいしそう — looks delicious. おいしい asserts a taste you have had. It is a small distinction and it is one of the quickest ways to sound like you have eaten in Japan before.
Reaching for うまい to sound casual
It is blunter rather than merely more casual, it leans male, and it can read as coarse at a table where people are being careful. おいしい is never wrong. Note too that うまい means skilful as often as it means tasty.
Also asked
Questions people ask about 美味しい
What does 美味しい (oishii) mean?
Delicious, tasty. It is the neutral word for good food, safe in any company, and it is normally written in kana — おいしい. The kanji spelling is a jukujikun, fitted to the word by meaning rather than by sound.
How do I say “it was delicious”?
おいしかったです. The い becomes かった and です is added after it — never おいしいでした. Pair it with ごちそうさまでした at the end of a meal someone cooked or paid for.
おいしい or うまい?
おいしい unless you have a reason. うまい is blunter, leans male, and can sound coarse in careful company — it is not simply the casual register of the same word. It also means skilful, which おいしい never does.
What is おいしそう?
Looks delicious. The final い drops before そう, and it is a guess from appearance rather than a verdict from taste. It is the correct thing to say when a dish is put in front of you and you have not eaten any of it yet.
Should I write おいしい or 美味しい?
Kana, in almost every context — messages, notes, ordinary prose. The kanji turns up on menus, packaging and signs, where it reads as a little more deliberate. Neither is wrong; the kana is what you will actually see written by hand.
How is 美味しい read, and what is the pitch?
おいしい, and the accent table accepts both ［0］ and ［3］ — flat, or with a drop after the second い. Both occur in ordinary speech. うまい is ［2］.
