Meaning
〜くせに expresses a contrasting condition that carries a tone of complaint, blame, or dissatisfaction. It means 'despite being/having [X], [Y happens instead],' implying that Y is unexpected or undesirable given X. This pattern requires the subject to remain the same in both clauses, and can follow verbs, i-adjectives, na-adjectives (with な), and nouns (with の).
Formation
| Part of speech | Formation |
|---|---|
| 動詞普通形 | くせに |
| い形容詞 | くせに |
| な形容詞 な | くせに |
| 名詞 の | くせに |
Examples
-
彼はこの問題を全然わかっていないくせに、先生の前だとわかったふりをしている。
He doesn't understand this problem at all, yet he pretends to understand it in front of the teacher. -
この服は値段が高いくせに、デザインがあまりよくない。
This dress is expensive, yet the design isn't very good. -
うちの息子は暇なくせに、アルバイトもしないし、勉強もしない。毎日家でごろごろしてる。本当に困ったなあ。
My son has plenty of free time, yet he neither works part-time nor studies. He just lounges around at home every day. It's really frustrating. -
彼女は日本語の先生のくせに、敬語が正しく使えない。
Despite being a Japanese language teacher, she cannot use honorific language correctly.
Summary
- Expresses dissatisfaction or complaint about a contradiction between two situations
- Both clauses must have the same subject; the second clause shows something negative or unexpected
- Forms: Verb (plain) + くせに | i-adjective + くせに | na-adjective + なくせに | noun + のくせに