How to Say ‘Don't call people idiots.’ in Japanese
人にばかと言わないで。
hito ni baka to iwa nai de
[hee-toh ni bah-KAH toh ee-WAH nah-ee deh]
💬 Usage Tip: The pattern "A に B と言う" means "call A B": に marks who you're saying it to, and と marks the words themselves. You can swap the insult out: 人にあほと言わないで "don't call people stupid".
Phrase Breakdown
人にばかと
hito ni baka to
'idiot' to people
人に means 'to people', ばか means 'idiot', and と marks the quoted word. Say it as hi-to-ni-ba-ka-to, keeping the 'h' in hito soft.
友だちにばかと言われた。
My friend called me an idiot.
Words in this phrase
人
hito
[hee-toh]
person; people
A general word for a person or people.
人と話すのが好きです。
I like talking with people.
に
ni
[ni]
to
Indicates direction or purpose of an action.
お父さんにプレゼントをあげます。
I will give a present to my father.
ばか
baka
[bah-KAH]
idiot; stupid
Common insult for a foolish person.
ばかと呼ばれた。
I was called an idiot.
と
to
[toh]
(quotation marker)
Marks words being said or thought, like quotation marks.
「はい」と答えた。
I answered 'yes'.
言わないで。
iwa nai de
don't say
A request not to say something. Say it as i-wa-na-i-de, and let your voice drop gently at the end.
そんなこと言わないで。
Don't say such things.
Words in this phrase
言わ
iwa
[ee-WAH]
say (negative stem)
Form of 言う (to say) used before ない.
誰にも言わない。
I won't tell anyone.
ない
nai
[nah-ee]
not
Negative ending attached to verbs.
今日は行かないです。
I am not going today.
で
de
[deh]
(please don't…)
After ない, forms a request not to do something.
見ないで。
Please don't look.
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