食えない

くえない
shrewd
smart (and wide-awake)
cunning
crafty

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くえない【食えない】

¶ → 食えない男

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くえない【食えない】

1 〔食べられない〕 not good to eat; inedible; uneatable.

●これは毒キノコだから食えないよ. These are poisonous mushrooms, so you can't eat them.

・この料理, 辛すぎて食えない. I can't eat this. It's far too hot. | This is (far) too hot for me to eat.

2 〔生活できない〕 be unable to live [support oneself]; be unable to keep body and soul together [one's head above water, the wolf from the door]; find it hard to get along. [⇒くう² 2]

●今の給料じゃとても食えない. I just can't get along on what I earn now. | My present salary simply isn't enough to live on.

・月給 10 万円じゃ食えない. No one could live on \100,000 a month. | A salary of \100,000 isn't enough to live on.

3 〔悪賢く気の許せない〕 shrewd; smart (and wide-awake); sharp; cunning; foxy; sly; crafty.

●食えない男 a crafty [tricky] fellow; a tough guy to deal with.

●あいつは食えないやつだよ. He's a shrewd operator. | You can't pull the wool over his eyes. | He's a deep one.