激辛

• 読み: げきから
• ローマ字: gekikara
• 漢字の分解: 激 (extreme/intense) + 辛 (spicy/hot) → extremely spicy
• 発音: /ge.ki.ka.ra/

意味

Extremely spicy — used to describe food that is intensely hot, or spice challenge menus at restaurants.

激辛 is ubiquitous in Japanese food culture and appears on restaurant menus, convenience store products, and YouTube challenge videos. Japan has a vibrant 激辛 culture with dedicated spicy-food fans, restaurant challenges where you eat increasingly spicy levels, and seasonal 激辛 products from brands like Cup Noodle and Calbee. TV variety shows frequently feature 激辛 challenge segments.

例文

1. この激辛ラーメン、辛すぎて涙が止まらない。
2. 激辛料理が好きな友達に付き合ったら胃がやられた。
3. 激辛チャレンジメニュー完食したら無料になるらしいよ。

使い方ガイド

場面: restaurants, friends, food reviews, convenience stores

トーン: descriptive, challenging

正しい言い方

• この店の激辛レベル5、食べたことある？ (Have you tried the level-5 spicy here?)
• 激辛好きなら絶対ここ行って。 (If you like extreme spice, you have to go here.)

避ける言い方

• 辛いのが苦手な人に激辛をすすめるのは配慮に欠ける (Recommending super spicy food to someone who can't handle heat shows poor consideration)

よくある間違い

• Underestimating Japanese 激辛 — restaurant challenge levels can be genuinely extreme, not just marketing hype

起源と歴史

From 激 (extreme/intense) + 辛 (spicy). A straightforward compound that has been used for decades but gained major cultural prominence in the 2000s-2010s with the rise of spicy food challenges and viral eating content.

文化的背景

時代: Long-standing term, cultural boom in 2000s-2010s

世代: All ages

社会的背景: Universal

地域メモ: Used across all of Japan. 激辛 products are a staple of convenience stores and restaurant marketing nationwide.