Nuance & Usage
天気 means "weather" in general, but it can also specifically mean "good weather" — いい天気ですね (nice weather, isn't it?) is one of the most common greetings in Japanese small talk. Related words: 天気予報 (tenki yohou — weather forecast), お天気 (otenki — weather, with polite prefix). For bad weather, you'd say 天気が悪い (tenki ga warui) or specify: 雨 (rain), 曇り (kumori — cloudy), 台風 (taifuu — typhoon).
Common Mistakes
Learners sometimes say 天気はいいです when they should say いい天気ですね — the latter sounds more natural as a conversation opener. Also, 天気 without a modifier can imply good weather: 明日は天気になるでしょう means "Tomorrow will be fine weather." Don't confuse 天気 (weather) with 気温 (kion — temperature) or 気候 (kikou — climate, long-term weather patterns).
Example Sentences (3)
今日はいい天気ですね。
きょうはいいてんきですね。
It's nice weather today, isn't it?
明日の天気予報を見ましたか?
あしたのてんきよほうをみましたか?
Did you check tomorrow's weather forecast?
天気がいいので散歩に行きましょう。
てんきがいいのでさんぽにいきましょう。
The weather is nice, so let's go for a walk.
Quick Quiz
Quick Quiz
N54 questionsTest your knowledge of 天気 with 4 different question types.
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