How to Say ‘I'm a little bad at speaking in front of people.’ in Japanese
人前で話すのが少し苦手です。
hitomae de hanasu no ga sukoshi nigate desu
[hee-toh-mah-eh deh hah-nah-soo noh gah soo-koh-shee nee-gah-teh dess]
💬 Usage Tip: [少し] (“a little”) softens the weakness—very interview-friendly. Word order: [人前で] (where) + [話す] (do) + [のが少し苦手です] (evaluation).
🇯🇵 In Japan: In Japan, it’s common to show modesty. Saying [少し苦手です] can sound more balanced than a strong “I’m terrible at it.”
Phrase Breakdown
人前
hitomae
[hee-toh-mah-eh]
in front of people; in public
Used to describe public settings; common when talking about presentation/public speaking in interviews.
人前で話すのが少し苦手です。
I’m a little not good at speaking in front of people.
で
de
[deh]
in/at (particle)
Indicates the situation/location where the action occurs (人前で話す).
人前で話すのが少し苦手です。
I’m a little not good at speaking in front of people.
話す
hanasu
[hah-nah-soo]
to speak; to talk
The action being discussed: speaking (public speaking).
人前で話すのが少し苦手です。
I’m a little not good at speaking in front of people.
の
no
[noh]
(nominalizer) "-ing" / "the act of"
Makes 話す into a noun phrase: 話すの = 'speaking'.
人前で話すのが少し苦手です。
I’m a little not good at speaking in front of people.
が
ga
[gah]
subject marker (particle)
Marks 'speaking in public' as the subject of 苦手です.
人前で話すのが少し苦手です。
I’m a little not good at speaking in front of people.
少し
sukoshi
[soo-koh-shee]
a little; somewhat
Softens the statement, which is polite and natural in interviews when mentioning a weakness.
少し苦手ですが改善したいです。
I’m a little weak at it, but I want to improve.
苦手
nigate
[nee-gah-teh]
not good at; weak in
States the weakness; best practice is to add what you are doing to improve.
人前で話すのが少し苦手です。
I’m a little not good at speaking in front of people.
です
desu
[dess]
to be (polite)
Polite sentence ending, suitable for interview answers.
人前で話すのが少し苦手です。
I’m a little not good at speaking in front of people.
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