Entry
しんなり
shinnari
しんなり describes something that has lost its original crispness or stiffness to become soft and pliable, most often used for vegetables during cooking.
Meaning
Quick Meaning
This word focuses on the transition from being stiff or crisp to becoming limp, supple, or soft. It is an essential term in cooking recipes to describe onions or cabbage that have softened from heat or salt. It can also describe plants wilting or materials like paper and hair losing their firmness due to moisture.
- softening from cooking
- wilting (for plants)
- losing stiffness or volume
Sense Map
Food and Vegetables
The state of vegetables becoming soft and pliable after being cooked, boiled, or salted.
玉ねぎがしんなりするまで炒める。
Plants
The state of plants or flowers wilting and drooping due to a lack of water or excess heat.
花が水不足でしんなりしている。
Materials and Hair
Losing stiffness, crispness, or volume due to moisture or liquid.
湿気で髪がしんなりする。
Usage Note
How to Use
しんなりする
Used as a verb to indicate the process of becoming soft or limp.
しんなりさせる
Causative form, meaning to intentionally make something soft (e.g., by sautéing or salting).
しんなりした
Modifies a noun to describe an object that is in a softened or wilted state.
How to Use
Common Phrases
しんなりするまで炒める
stir-fry until soft and tender
塩で揉んでしんなりさせる
rub with salt to soften
野菜がしんなりする
vegetables become tender
しんなりとした髪
limp and flat hair
Nuance
Context Nuance
| Common Contexts | Nuance | Usage Note |
|---|---|---|
| Cooking and preparing vegetables | positive | The most frequent usage. Shows that the ingredients have successfully reached a tender, pliable stage. |
| Plants and flowers | negative | Describes wilting and drooping due to harsh conditions like intense heat or lack of water. |
Similar Words
Comparison Table
| Similar Words | When to Use | Not the Same as | Mini Example |
|---|---|---|---|
ぐんにゃり ぐんにゃり / similar | Use when something bends completely limply, often implying a heavy loss of energy or structural integrity. | しんなり is a milder softening, whereas ぐんにゃり sounds like the object has completely collapsed or lost its form. | 暑さでぐんにゃりする |
ぐにゃぐにゃ ぐにゃぐにゃ / similar | Use when something is extremely soft, flabby, and easily bent in any direction without breaking. | ぐにゃぐにゃ describes an inherently soft, highly flexible state, often with a slightly negative nuance of being formless, while しんなり focuses on the loss of crispness. | ぐにゃぐにゃのゴム |
Usage Note
Common Mistakes
Using しんなり to describe a soft pillow, blanket, or fresh bread.
しんなり refers to things that have *lost* their stiffness (like wilting vegetables). For inherently soft or fluffy things, use ふわふわ (fuwafuwa) or 柔らかい (yawarakai).
Thinking しんなり is always a negative word because it means 'wilted'.
In a cooking context, it is the desired, positive result indicating that vegetables have softened appropriately.
Examples
Examples
玉ねぎがしんなりするまで炒めてください。
たまねぎがしんなりするまでいためてください。
Please stir-fry the onions until they become tender.
LiteralThe most common usage found in cooking recipes.
塩を振ってしばらく置くと、キャベツがしんなりします。
しおをふってしばらくおくと、キャベツがしんなりします。
If you sprinkle salt and leave it for a while, the cabbage will soften.
LiteralShows the change in texture caused by salt.
水が足りなくて、鉢植えの花がしんなりしている。
みずがたりなくて、はちうえのはながしんなりしている。
The potted flower is drooping because it doesn't have enough water.
VisualUsed for plants that have lost their freshness and stiffness.
雨に濡れて、本がしんなりしてしまった。
あめにぬれて、ほんがしんなりしてしまった。
The book got wet in the rain and became limp.
VisualDescribes paper losing its crispness due to moisture.
湿気で髪がしんなりとして、まとまらない。
しっけでかみがしんなりとして、まとまらない。
My hair has lost its volume due to the humidity and won't hold its shape.
VisualDescribes hair that has lost its bounce and volume.
Similar Words
ぐんにゃり
gunnyari
Describes something that has lost its firmness and become limp, or a person who has completely lost their energy. Implies a more extreme loss of structural integrity or energy compared to shinnari.
ぐにゃぐにゃ
gunyagunya
The state of being extremely soft, limp, or easily bent out of shape, like soft rubber or weak limbs. Focuses on an inherently extremely soft, flabby, and easily bendable state.
Questions
Can I use しんなり for a person's gentle personality?
No, it strictly describes physical softness, limpness, or wilting, not personality.
What is the difference between しんなり and 柔らかい (yawarakai)?
柔らかい is a general adjective for 'soft', while しんなり specifically describes the physical transition of a crisp or firm object becoming limp.
Is it used often outside of the kitchen?
While cooking is its primary domain, it's also commonly used to describe wilting plants or hair losing its volume on a humid day.
Source Details
- Entry ID
- 2761120
- Source
- JMdict_english
- Revision
- -
- Review notes
- No special notes
- Active language
- English
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