I asked a native speaker whether 胸が悪くなる (mune ga waruku naru: to feel sick, to be nauseated) always refers to physical nausea. As I told him, we often say things like, “The California budget problem makes me sick.” That very day, I had seen the following sentence in the newspaper: “The amount of fraud and corruption turns my stomach.” This sentence indicates a disgust that has nothing to do with feeling physically sick. I asked, is 胸が悪くなる like that? Or is it always about a physical response?
Here’s what he said:
It is not always about a physical response. It can mean either a direct physical response or mental/emotional disgust. But 胸が悪くなる would be too strong if you were describing a budget, fraud, or corruption. Still, it sounds natural to say this, for instance:
彼の下品な冗談は胸が悪くなる。
Kare no gehinna jōdan wa mune ga waruku naru.
His vulgar jokes make me sick.彼 (kare: he)
下品 (gehin: vulgar) below + refinement
冗談 (jōdan: joke) useless + talk
The native speaker further noted that because 胸が悪くなる is such a strong expression, the jokes in this case must be extremely disgusting!
