ならず者

ならず者

Japanese

Kanji in this term
者
もの Grade: 3
kun’yomi

Alternative spellings	成らず者 不成者 (uncommon) 破落戸 (rare)

Etymology

Compound of 成らず (narazu, the classical negative form of 成る (naru, “to become”) with overtones of “not turning out correctly” or “unacceptable, not right”) +‎ 者 (mono, “person”).[1][2]

First cited to a text from 1657.[1]

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) ならずもの [nàrázúmónó] (Heiban – [0])[2]
• IPA^(key): [na̠ɾa̠zɨᵝmo̞no̞]

Noun

ならず者(もの) • (narazumono) 

1. a ne'er-do-well, a good-for-nothing, a blackguard, a scoundrel, a rogue
2. (more specifically) a person with no fixed employment and who makes a living through crime: a thug, a vagabond, a bandit

   Synonyms: やくざ (yakuza), 無頼漢 (buraikan), ごろつき (gorotsuki)

3. (more specifically) a person who is beyond the pale and who does what they want: a libertine

   Synonyms: 道楽者 (dōrakusha), ならずめ (narazume) (rare)

4. someone for whom nothing goes right, someone who is in dire straits

References

1. 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
2. 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN