#chotto

ちょっと is one of the more useful and commonly used words in the Japanese language. Even if you're very new to Japanese, it's pretty likely you've come across ちょっと before, because it's short, simple, and easy to say.

But not all ちょっとs are alike. For example, two of ちょっと's meanings, "little" and "very," contradict one another.

If I combine ちょっと with a word like 難しい, meaning "difficult," it can mean either "a little difficult" or "very difficult."

That's a pretty significant change, don't you think?

Luckily, learning the differences between all of these ちょっと usages should be as short and sweet as the word itself, so let's get right to it!

Prerequisite: This article is going to use hiragana, kanji, and provide example sentences. A beginner level of grammar will be very helpful as well.

Voltage: Please don't post spoilers.

Fans: HOW DARE YOU TELL US WHAT TO DO