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I know ばか literally means "stupid/idiot" but i remember a scene when i was re-watching naruto. the context is:

"sarutobi asuma just got news that his close skilled friend (old comrade of him) was killed by akatsuki, he was very shocked and could not believe such a very strong, skilled friend was killed easily by akatsuki and then he said 'ばかな! bla bla bla'." i am sorry i can't fully provide what he said because my limited japanese skill.

I dont know equivalent of that word in english in the context above, maybe " huh, how can?". correct me if i am wrong.

so when is 'ばかな' used other than to insult people? and is it okay to say it to close friend (older) as expression?

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  • In that context, at least, I think he was probably saying "Foolish!" or something... I would need more of the Japanese context.
    – knowledge_is_power
    Commented Aug 11, 2017 at 18:09

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"Impossible!"

"I can't believe it!"

"No way!"

These can be expressed with "ばかな！".

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  • thats all? and is it okay to say it to older people?
    – Kakashi
    Commented Aug 11, 2017 at 18:15
  • Okay, in that case, you may think the translation is "Sh**!" You should not use it in a formal setting.
    – user1118
    Commented Aug 11, 2017 at 18:19
  • btw i just tried to translate "impossible" to japanese. it says "不可能". is it interchangeable with ばかな or was meant for another purpose?
    – Kakashi
    Commented Aug 11, 2017 at 18:27
  • 不可能 is mostly used in a formal sentence. For example, "It is impossible for North Korea to use a nuclear weapon actually." 北朝鮮が実際に核兵器を使うのは不可能だ。ばかな is used in a colloquial situation, so they are usually not interchangeable.
    – user1118
    Commented Aug 11, 2017 at 18:31
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    @Kakashi, be weary of one word translations. Sometimes, when multiple translations are given, the word you are trying to understand is often a mix of the two.
    – ajsmart
    Commented Aug 11, 2017 at 19:29

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