～のが下手
Say what someone is bad at
You’ll be able to admit what you’re not good at without sounding harsh.
芽衣は漢字を書くのが下手です。
mei wa kanji o kaku no ga heta desu.
What do you think this sentence means?
Mei is not good at writing kanji.
Say that someone is not good at an activity
Use ～のが下手 to describe a skill someone is poor at. When talking about another person directly, consider whether the context makes the judgment polite.
私は歌を歌うのが下手です。
watashi wa uta o utau no ga heta desu.
I am bad at singing.
Activity + のが下手
Nominalize the activity with の, mark it with が, and add 下手です.
私は歌うのが下手です。
watashi wa utau no ga heta desu.
I am bad at singing.
弟は料理するのが下手です。
otouto wa ryouri suru no ga heta desu.
My younger brother is bad at cooking.
私は漢字を書くのが下手です。
watashi wa kanji o kaku no ga heta desu.
I am not good at writing kanji.
～のが上手 vs ～のが下手
Same frame, opposite verdict. Japanese avoids 下手 about other people — about yourself it is modest, about someone else it is blunt.
下手, not good at
私は歌うのが下手です。
watashi wa utau no ga heta desu.
I am bad at singing.
Said about yourself, this sounds modest.
上手, good at
ミアは歌うのが上手です。
mia wa utau no ga jouzu desu.
Mia is good at singing.
Praise like this is normally aimed at someone else.
私は料理するのが下手です。
watashi wa ryouri suru no ga heta desu.
I am not good at cooking.
私は歌うのが下手です。
watashi wa utau no ga heta desu.
I am not good at singing.
私はボールを投げるのが下手です。
watashi wa booru o nageru no ga heta desu.
I am bad at throwing a ball.
6 more examples in the grammar path — free for a limited time.