How do you say "Isn't it a little expensive?" in Japanese?

"Isn't it a little expensive?" in Japanese is "少し高くないですか". This phrase is commonly used in Japan.

🤔💸

How to Say ‘Isn't it a little expensive?’ in Japanese

Q: What does "少し高くないですか" mean in English?

"少し高くないですか" means "Isn't it a little expensive?" in English. Usage tip: [高い] changes to [高くない] when you say "not expensive," so [少し高くないですか] literally means "isn't it a little expensive?" This pattern is very reusable: [遠い] → [遠くないですか] ("isn't it a little far?").

少し高くないですか

sukoshi takaku nai desu ka

[soo-koh-shee tah-koo nai dess kah]

💬 Usage Tip: [高い] changes to [高くない] when you say "not expensive," so [少し高くないですか] literally means "isn't it a little expensive?" This pattern is very reusable: [遠い] → [遠くないですか] ("isn't it a little far?").

🇯🇵 In Japan: This is a soft way to challenge a fare without sounding aggressive. In Japan, raising a problem indirectly like this often works better than saying flatly "[高いです]" right away.

Phrase Breakdown

少し

sukoshi

[soo-koh-shee]

a little; a bit

Softens the complaint by saying something is a little high.

Example

少し高くないですか、と聞きました。

I asked, “Isn’t it a little expensive?”

高く

takaku

[tah-koo]

high; expensive (stem form)

Stem of 高い used before ない in the negative question pattern.

Example

少し高くないですか、とやんわり言いました。

I gently said, “Isn’t it a little high?”

ない

nai

[nai]

not

Negative ending here used in a question to say “isn’t it?”

Example

少し高くないですか、と確認しました。

I checked, “Isn’t it a little expensive?”

です

desu

[dess]

is; polite ending

Makes the question polite and appropriate in conversation.

Example

少し高くないですか、と丁寧に聞きました。

I politely asked, “Isn’t it a little high?”

か

[kah]

question marker

Turns the phrase into a polite question.

Example

少し高くないですか、と運転手さんに聞きました。

I asked the driver, “Isn’t it a little expensive?”

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