Japanese meaning of 浅学非才
Reading:
せんがくひさい (sengaku hisai)
English Translation:
Poorly learned and untalented
Meaning & Cultural Context
Meaning:
Humility formula: “my learning is shallow and my talents meager.”
Cultural Context:
Conventional in academic prefaces, speeches, and formal letters; signals modesty and deference to audience/elders.
自分を「浅学で才能も乏しい」と低く言う謙遜表現。
論文序・講演・儀礼文での定型句。聴衆や先達への敬意を示すレトリック。
Grammar & Learning Points
Grammar Point
• Noun phrase for shallow learning and little talent; often with “を自称する.”
Trap for English Speakers
May be misunderstood as false modesty.
Example
Basic Example
自らを浅学非才と謙遜する。
He humbly describes himself as poorly learned and untalented.
Applied Example
浅学非才ながらも、彼は必死に魔法書を読み進めた。
Poorly learned and untalented though he was, he struggled on, reading through the grimoire.