手荒い

• Reading: てあらい
• Romaji: tearai
• Kanji breakdown: 手 (te) — hand, method; 荒い (arai) — rough, wild, violent
• Pronunciation: /te.a.ɾa.i/

Meaning

Rough; harsh; violent; crude. Describes actions or handling that are reckless, unnecessarily forceful, or brutishly direct.

An i-adjective pairing 手 (te, hand, method) with 荒い (arai, rough, wild). Used to criticise physical roughness, aggressive interrogation methods, or heavy-handed approaches to problem-solving. Also appears as 手荒く (tearaku), the adverbial form. The connotation is always negative—a lack of care or finesse.

Examples

1. 取調官の手荒い尋問に、弁護士が強く抗議した。 The defence lawyer lodged a strong protest against the interrogator's rough-handed questioning.
2. そんな手荒い扱いをしたら、精密機器が壊れてしまう。 Handling precision equipment that roughly will break it.
3. 問題を手荒く解決しようとする姿勢は、後で余計な摩擦を生む。 Trying to resolve problems by brute force tends to create unnecessary friction down the line.

Usage Guide

Context: criticism, law enforcement, workplace, physical handling

Tone: negative

Origin & History

Compound of 手 (te, hand, method) and 荒い (arai, rough, wild, violent). The combination describes an approach—whether physical or methodological—that lacks gentleness and control.

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: Adults

Social background: Universal