Despite the freezing weather, I still see children running around the park in shorts, skirts and even without their coats. Watching them play, the saying 子どもは風の子 (kodomo wa kaze no ko) comes to mind. It’s for when kids seem unbothered by the lower temperatures and loosely translates as “children are open-air creatures.”
Parents, on the other hand, understand the need to bundle up in the cold. The often forgotten second part to the 子どもは風の子 saying is 大人は火の子 (otona wa hi no ko, adults are fire creatures). No matter how many times their parents may tell them, some kids will do what they want — our little darlings may even behave more like what English speakers refer to as ブラット (buratto, brats).
I have to admit, ブラット is a word I’ve been struggling to translate since the release of the Charli XCX album of the same name last year. The singer’s definition of ブラット wound up as 2024 word of the year according to Collins English Dictionary.
The list of Japanese words that depict misbehaving youngsters is long. You have 悪ガキ (warugaki, naughty rascals), クソガキ (kusogaki, little s–ts), いたずらっ子 (itazurakko, mischievous scamps), 暴れん坊 (abarenbō, a wild child), きかん坊 (kikanbō, unruly kids) — all of whom may grow up to become ワル (waru, troublemakers), ヤンキー (yankī, juvenile delinquents) or 不良 (furyō, hoodlums).
Unfortunately, none of these words seem to capture the nuance of Charli’s ブラット. No, being ブラット on her terms is not simply behaving rudely while partying around. It’s sort of a license to express ありのままの自分 (ari no mama no jibun, one’s true self) in a playfully defiant manner, which my editors helped me put into words after a lively debate.
Upon further reflection, however, one Japanese word I feel comes close to ブラット is じゃじゃ馬 (jajauma). You may recognize the kanji 馬 (uma, horse) in the term, and as a whole it suggests an untamed wild horse. But, it’s used to refer to a woman who is free-spirited, fierce and possibly a little selfish. Naturally, it’s a slightly archaic word that nobody — certainly not Japan’s Z世代 (zetto sedai, Gen Z) — would be likely to use.
Calling someone a “brat” can sound kind of harsh in English, but what if you simply imply they’re behaving “bratty”? The Japanese word for “ish” is っぽい (ppoi), which can be tacked onto the end of a word to make it an adjective: 子どもっぽい (kodomo-ppoi, childish/child-like), 熱っぽい (netsu-ppoi, feverish), 怒りっぽい (okori-ppoi, easy to anger).
In this sense, though, ブラットっぽい (buratto-ppoi, brat-ish) seems to me more in line with the Charli XCX definition of “brat” and the slime green-tinted PR campaign that went with it. In Japanese, “bratty” is closer to the word 生意気 (namaiki, cheeky). Indeed, when I was an office worker, I was once instructed, 上司に気に入られたかったら、生意気な口は利かない方がいい (Jōshi ni ki ni iraretakattara, namaikina kuchi wa kikanai hō ga ii, If you want to gain your boss’s favor, you shouldn’t talk back in a cocky manner).
Despite that advice, I spoke to my superiors in a way I thought was 主体性がある (shutaisei ga aru, independent-minded) and 自分の意見を持っている (jibun no iken o motte-iru, having one’s opinions). Unfortunately, in the context of a Japanese office, those characteristics are both 生意気 and 聞き分けが悪い (kikiwake ga warui, disobedient). I think my younger self and Charli XCX would have gotten along quite well.
When it’s in a noun form, 聞き分け refers to how obedient someone is. Brats are 聞き分けのない人 (kikiwake no nai hito, disobedient people), but if your young child is compliant and well-behaved, you might say, うちの子は年の割に聞き分けがいい (Uchi no ko wa toshi no wari ni kikiwake ga ii, My child is quite well-behaved for their age).
人の言うことを理解して従う聞き分けの良い子は協調性があるため、学校では優等生と言われがちです (Hito no iu koto o rikai shite shitagau kikiwake no yoi ko wa kyōchōsei ga aru tame, gakkō dewa yūtōsei to iwaregachi desu, Children who listen to others, understand and follow are likely to be referred to as model students at school due to their cooperative nature).
The term 優等生 (yūtōsei, honor students) suggests high achievers as well as exemplary 生徒 (seito, students). They stick to school rules, though, and they’re often teased as 先生のお気に入り (sensei no o-ki ni iri, teacher’s favorite/pet) — a label 劣等生 (rettōsei, poor students) rarely acquire. Instead, 劣等生 might take on the role of a class clown, also known as お調子者 (o-chōshimono, playful jokers), ムードメーカー (mūdo mēkā, mood setters [smooth talkers]) and, in today’s parlance, ブラットっぽい.
When 聞き分け is used in its verb form, 聞き分ける (kikiwakeru), it takes on a slightly different meaning: “to tell the difference by listening.” For example, 楽器の音を聞き分けるのは難しい (Gakki no oto o kikiwakeru nowa muzukashii, It’s difficult to distinguish the sounds of musical instruments just by hearing). The similarly sounding 見分ける (miwakeru, to recognize/distinguish) is used when people discuss appearances, such as in 毒きのこの見分け方 (doku kinoko no miwakekata, how to identify poisonous mushrooms) and 花粉症と風邪は見分けにくい (kafunshō to kaze wa miwakenikui, hard to tell if it’s hay fever or a cold).
This Monday, we recognize and acknowledge our daughters during ひな祭り (Hinamatsuri), which literally translates as Doll’s Festival but is, in effect, Girl’s Day. Whether those daughters are 先生のお気に入り or ブラット, make sure to take a moment to tell them you love them.
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