図々しい (zūzūshii) means “shameless,” “brazen,” or “pushy.” It criticizes someone who acts without the restraint expected in the situation. 厚かましい is close in meaning and can be used self-deprecatingly before a request, as in 厚かましいお願いですが.
い-adjective predicate · an accusation about character
図々しいN1brazen · shameless
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よ
よ
I'm telling you
sentence particle · sharing a judgement the listener may not hold yet
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ね
ね
don't you think
sentence particle · よね together seeks agreement on a shared complaint
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Honestly, that guy's got some nerve.
図々しいお願い · softening your own ask
polite
、？
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図々しい
ずうずうしい ［5］
cheeky; a big ask
い-adjective attributive · naming your own request before making it
図々しいお願いN1a cheeky request
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お願い
おねがい ［0］
request; favour
noun · the お is fixed in this word
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です
です
(polite ending)
copula · politeness before the が that turns the corner
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が
が
but
conjunction · the polite pivot into the actual request
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手伝って
てつだって
help
て-form of 手伝う · leading into いただけませんか
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いただけません
いただけません
could I receive (humble)
potential negative of いただく · the humblest common request form
ていただけませんかN3could you please
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か
か
(question)
particle · turning it into a question, which softens it further
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I know this is a lot to ask, but could you help?
図々しい態度 · describing behaviour
polite
。
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彼
かれ ［1］
he
pronoun · the person whose conduct is at issue
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の
の
links noun to noun
particle · A の B = B belonging to A
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図々しい
ずうずうしい ［5］
brazen
い-adjective attributive · attached to 態度, so the conduct is blamed
図々しいN1brazen · shameless
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態度
たいど ［1］
attitude; manner
noun · how someone carries themselves
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に
に
to; at; into
particle · a point something reaches — a place, a time, a person, or a state
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我慢
がまん ［1］
endurance
noun · 我慢できない, cannot put up with it
我慢N3putting up with it
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できません
できません
can't
polite negative potential of する · completing 我慢できない
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でした
でした
(past)
polite past copula · pushing the whole statement into the past
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I couldn't stand his attitude.
図々しく · as an adverb
plain past
。
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彼
かれ ［1］
he
pronoun · the subject of the complaint
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は
は
as for — the topic
particle · written は, read わ
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図々しく
ずうずうしく
brazenly
adverbial form of the い-adjective · く replaces い
図々しいN1brazen · shameless
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一番
いちばん ［2］
the most; number one
adverb · forming the superlative with the adjective that follows
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いい
いい
good; best here
い-adjective · 一番いい is the everyday superlative
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席
せき ［1］
seat
noun · a seat in a room or venue
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に
に
to; at; into
particle · a point something reaches — a place, a time, a person, or a state
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座った
すわった
sat down
plain past of 座る · takes に for the place occupied
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He brazenly sat down in the best seat.
ずうずうしい · in kana
plain
、？
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ずうずうしい
ずうずうしい ［5］
cheeky; brazen
い-adjective in kana · very common in casual writing
図々しいN1brazen · cheeky
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けど
けど
but
conjunction · casual pivot into the request
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もう
もう
one more; another
adverb · pairs with 一つ to mean 'one further'
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一つ
ひとつ ［2］
one (thing)
counter · the general counter for objects
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いい
いい
okay; allowed
い-adjective · asking permission with いい?
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Sorry to be cheeky, but can I have one more?
図太い · the admiring cousin
polite
。
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彼
かれ ［1］
he
pronoun · the person being described
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の
の
links noun to noun
particle · A の B = B belonging to A
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図太い
ずぶとい ［3］
thick-skinned; unflappable
い-adjective · related in image but admiring, not accusing
図太いN1thick-skinned · unflappable
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ところ
ところ
that quality; that side of them
noun · 'the part of them that is', abstracting a trait
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は
は
as for — the topic
particle · written は, read わ
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正直
しょうじき ［3］
honestly
noun used adverbially · flagging a candid admission
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羨ましい
うらやましい ［5］
enviable
い-adjective · describing the speaker's own feeling
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です
です
(polite ending)
copula · politeness on an い-adjective predicate
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I actually envy how unflappable he is.
Forms
How 図々しい gets used
Person ＋ は＋図々しい
あの人は図々しい. A direct accusation about character. Said behind someone's back far more often than to their face.
図々しい＋お願い / 人 / 態度
図々しいお願い. A cheeky request — usually your own, named in advance to take the edge off.
図々しいですが＋the request
The set softener. You concede the imposition before making it, which is exactly what 遠慮 requires.
ずうずうしい
Very common in casual writing. The kanji 図々しい uses the repeat mark 々 and reads identically.
Meaning
図々しい vs 厚かましい vs 生意気
It is the failure of 遠慮. The offence is not the taking — it is the missing hesitation. Someone who apologises and then takes the last cake is fine; someone who takes it without a flicker is 図々しい.
厚かましい is the near-identical twin. Same accusation, a shade more formal, and the more usual choice in the fixed apology 厚かましいお願いですが. In speech about a third party, 図々しい is blunter and more common.
生意気 is about rank, not restraint. It means someone is acting above their position — a junior contradicting a senior. A person can be 図々しい without being 生意気 at all, and the reverse.
図太い can be a compliment. Thick-skinned, unbothered by pressure. 図太い神経 is nerve, and there is admiration in it that 図々しい never carries.
Inside the word
図々しい — the repeat mark and what it doubles
The 々 is doing the doubling
図々 is 図 written twice, with 々 standing in for the repeat. The reduplication is what intensifies it — the same device gives you 騒々しい and 刺々しい.
The 図 is not “diagram” here
The character is used for its sound rather than its usual sense. Related is 図に乗る, to get carried away after a small success — the same image of pushing past where you should have stopped.
Naming your own request is the polite move
図々しいお願いですが works because it performs the 遠慮 that the request itself lacks. Conceding the imposition first is what makes it acceptable to make.
Watch out
Where 図々しい goes wrong
Saying it to someone's face
It is a genuine insult about character, not a tease. To object to a specific act, put it on the act — それはちょっと… does more work with less damage.
Confusing it with 生意気
生意気 is about acting above your rank. 図々しい is about taking without hesitating. A polite junior can be 図々しい; a modest freeloader is not 生意気.
Reading 図太い as the same word
図太い is often admiring — nerve under pressure. Calling someone 図太い when you meant 図々しい will read as a compliment.
Also asked
Questions people ask about 図々しい
How is 図々しい different from 厚かましい?
Very little separates them. 厚かましい is slightly more formal and is the usual choice in the set apology 厚かましいお願いですが. 図々しい is blunter and more common in speech about someone else.
Is it rude to say?
About a third party it is a strong complaint but ordinary. Said to someone's face it is an insult about who they are, and it will be taken that way.
Why would I call my own request 図々しい?
Because conceding the imposition is what makes it acceptable to make. 図々しいお願いですが performs the 遠慮 the request itself skips.
図々しい or 生意気?
Different offences. 生意気 is stepping above your rank; 図々しい is taking without hesitating. Neither implies the other.
Should I write it in kanji?
Both are common. ずうずうしい in kana suits casual writing and reads a touch lighter; 図々しい is standard in print.
Is 図太い just a stronger 図々しい?
No — it is often positive. 図太い means unflappable, hard to rattle, and 図太い神経 is close to admiration. 図々しい is never a compliment.
