Kawaii Shirts

可愛(かわい)い is usually translated as "cute", and that undersells it. Kawaii is closer to something you feel protective of: small, round, a little helpless, and impossible to be annoyed at. It is one of the first words most learners pick up, and one of the last they stop using.

These are our kawaii designs. Most of them carry real Japanese, not decoration, so the kana and kanji on the shirt say what they appear to say. We teach the language for a living, so we would rather not print something that makes a native speaker wince.

What is on them

• Kawaii food, the sushi, fruit and snacks that get faces drawn on them in Japan.
• Animals, especially cats, because 猫(ねこ) is undefeated.
• Everyday phrases like おはよう and おめでとう, written the way people actually write them.
• Seasonal designs, from cherry blossoms in spring to sunflowers in summer.

More like this

If you want the cute without the shirt, there are kawaii mugs as well. For the rest of our designs, see all Japanese t-shirts, or go straight to funny Japanese shirts, kanji designs or Japanese art and anime.

Want to read the words, not just wear them

Clay and Yumi have been teaching Japanese reading since 2002, and every story we publish is narrated by Yumi, a native speaker. If a shirt is what brought you here, our guide to choosing a bundle will point you at a sensible starting place, whether you are on your first hiragana or ready for real Japanese.