生々しい

• Reading: なまなましい
• Romaji: namanamashii
• Kanji breakdown: 生 (nama) — raw, fresh (repeated for intensification)
• Pronunciation: /na.ma.na.ma.ɕiː/

Meaning

Vivid; raw; graphic; disturbingly realistic. Describes something that feels uncomfortably fresh, immediate, or unprocessed — especially trauma, violence, or memory.

An i-adjective formed by the reduplication 生々 (intensifying 'raw') + しい. The repetition intensifies the sense of rawness. Used to describe accounts, images, or memories that are so vivid they feel as if no time has passed — often with an unsettling quality. 生々しい傷 (raw wound), 生々しい記憶 (vivid memory), 生々しい描写 (graphic depiction) are typical compounds.

Examples

1. 事故現場の生々しい映像がニュースで繰り返し流された。 Graphic footage from the accident scene was broadcast repeatedly on the news.
2. 戦場から帰った兵士の言葉は生々しく、聴衆の心を揺さぶった。 The words of the soldier who returned from the battlefield were so raw and vivid that they shook the audience to their core.
3. あの失恋の記憶はまだ生々しく、思い出すだけで胸が痛む。 The memory of that heartbreak is still so vivid that just thinking about it makes my chest ache.

Usage Guide

Context: journalism, literature, film/media, personal narratives

Tone: intense

Origin & History

From 生 (nama, raw) reduplicated as 生々 + しい. The doubling intensifies the rawness, suggesting something so unprocessed it feels painfully immediate.

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: Adults

Social background: Universal