がましい

The suffix がましい attaches to nouns (and occasionally verb stems) to form い-adjectives meaning "resembling," "suggestive of," or "having the feel of" the base word. It almost always carries a negative or undesirable nuance, implying that something has an unpleasant quality reminiscent of the base noun.

Common words using がましい

Because がましい is not freely productive (you cannot attach it to just any noun), it is best learned through the fixed expressions where it appears:

• おしつけがましい押しつけがましい – pushy, imposing (from おしつけ押しつけ, forcing something on someone)
  そんなおしつけがましい押しつけがましいことはやめてください。

  Please stop being so pushy about it.
• おんきせがましい恩着せがましい – acting as if one has done a favor, self-congratulatory (from おんきせ恩着せ, putting someone in one's debt)
  おんきせがましい恩着せがましいたいど態度がきらい嫌いだ。

  I hate that attitude of acting like you've done me a favor.
• いいわけがましい言い訳がましい – excuse-like, sounding like excuses (from いいわけ言い訳, excuse)
  いいわけがましい言い訳がましいことをゆう言うな。

  Don't say things that sound like excuses.
• みれんがましい未練がましい – clingy, unable to let go (from みれん未練, lingering attachment)
  みれんがましく未練がましくもとかの元カノにれんらく連絡するのはやめろ。

  Stop clinging on and contacting your ex-girlfriend.
• ぐち愚痴がましい – whiny, complaint-like (from ぐち愚痴, grumbling)
  ぐち愚痴がましいことばかりいっている言っているときらわれる嫌われるよ。

  If you keep saying whiny things, people will dislike you.
• さしでがましい差し出がましい – meddlesome, presumptuous (from さしで差し出, sticking out / overstepping)
  さしでがましい差し出がましいようですが、ひとこと一言よろしいですか。

  I know it may be presumptuous, but may I say a word?

Conjugation

Since がましい creates い-adjectives, it conjugates like any other い-adjective:

• Negative: がましくない
• Adverbial: がましく
• Past: がましかった

Nuance

The key point about がましい is its critical or disapproving tone. When you describe someone's behavior as おしつけがましい押しつけがましい or おんきせがましい恩着せがましい, you are expressing that their behavior is unpleasant or socially inappropriate. This makes it unsuitable for neutral or positive descriptions.