All Entries
79 entries1
ンゴ んご
A suffix from 2ch/5ch forums — add "-ngo" to sentences for self-deprecating humor
Casual
2
沼 ぬま
A bottomless obsession you can't escape — "falling into the swamp"
Casual
3
ワンオペ わんおぺ
Handling everything solo — short for 'one-man operation.' Originally about understaffed restaurants, now widely used for solo parenting and overwork.
Casual
4
鬼 おに
A prefix meaning 'insanely' or 'crazy' — oni-strong, oni-cute, oni-hard.
Casual
5
推し おし
Your favorite person/thing you stan — from idol culture, now used for everything
Casual
6
お疲れ様です おつかれさまです
The all-purpose workplace greeting — works as "hello," "goodbye," and everything in between
Polite OK
7
オワコン おわこん
Short for 'owatta kontentsu' (finished content) — something or someone past their prime.
Casual
8
パリピ ぱりぴ
Casual
9
ぴえん ぴえん
A cute way to say "I am sad" / "I wanna cry" — huge in 2019, now a bit dated
Casual
10
ポンコツ ぽんこつ
A go-to casual word for anything (or anyone) broken-down, useless, or barely functional — often used self-deprecatingly, sometimes even affectionately.
Casual
11
リア充 りあじゅう
Someone whose offline life is thriving — they've got friends, a partner, and actually go outside.
Casual
12
セクハラ せくはら
Short for 'sexual harassment' — Japan's first mainstream harassment term
Neutral
13
しか勝たん しかかたん
Nothing beats ___ — the stan culture catchphrase for declaring your absolute favorite.
Casual
14
知らんけど しらんけど
A Kansai-born phrase tacked onto the end of statements to dodge responsibility — 'but I dunno though.'
Casual
15
それな それな
"Exactly" / "that" — the shortest possible way to agree with someone
Casual
16
ただしイケメンに限る ただしいけめんにかぎる
"...but only if you're hot." A cynical internet meme about looks privilege.
Casual
17
タイパ たいぱ
Short for 'time performance' — how much value you get for the time you spend.
Casual
18
体力お化け たいりょくおばけ
Someone with insane stamina or endurance — literally a "stamina monster"
Casual
19
タメ語 ためご
Casual speech without honorifics — the way you talk to equals and close friends.
Casual
20
タワマン たわまん
Short for 'tower mansion' — a high-rise condo that doubles as a status symbol
Neutral
21
テイクアウト ていくあうと
Wasei-eigo for buying food or drinks to go — sounds like English but isn't quite how native speakers say it
Neutral
22
尊い とうとい
Something so beautiful or precious that it moves you to tears — the highest form of fan devotion.
Casual
23
豆腐メンタル とうふめんたる
Someone who's mentally fragile — their mind crumbles like tofu at the slightest pressure.
Casual
24
使えない つかえない
"Useless" / "incompetent" — a harsh way to call someone worthless at their job
Casual
25
ツッコミ つっこみ
The "straight man" role in comedy — also used for calling out nonsense in daily life
Casual
26
積ん読 つんどく
Buying books and letting them pile up unread — one of the most famous "untranslatable Japanese words"
Neutral
27
上から目線 うえからめせん
Talking down to someone — acting superior when you have no right to
Casual
28
ウケる うける
"That is hilarious" — the classic laugh reaction, especially "ウケるんだけど！"
Casual
29
ワンチャン わんちゃん
"Maybe" / "there is a chance" — from "one chance," now means any slim possibility
Casual
30
ワロタ わろた
Internet-speak for 'I laughed' — the predecessor to 草 (kusa), born on 2ch forums.
Casual
31
やばい やばい
The ultimate all-purpose slang — can mean anything from "amazing" to "terrible"
Casual
32
ヤンキー やんきー
In Japan, 'yankee' doesn't mean American — it means juvenile delinquent.
Casual
33
やりらふぃー やりらふぃー
Slang for high-energy, party-people-style Japanese youth — and their fashion. Born from a Japanese mishearing of a Norwegian lyric that went viral on TikTok.
Casual
34
よっ よっ
The ultimate minimal male greeting — just one syllable
Casual
35
陽キャ ようきゃ
An outgoing, sociable person — short for "sunny character"
Casual
36
優勝 ゆうしょう
This wins!' — crowning something the undisputed champion. An SNS catchphrase where 優勝 (yūshō, 'championship') is used to declare something the absolute best — nothing else compares.
Casual
37
あざす あざす
A bare-bones 'thanks!' — 'arigatou gozaimasu' chopped down to its smallest possible form.
Casual
38
映える ばえる
Looks great in photos — born from "Insta-bae" (Instagram-worthy)
Casual
39
バカかっこいい ばかかっこいい
Synonymous with "super cool." Here, バカ (baka / "stupid") is not an insult — it works as a positive intensifier.
Casual
40
バズる ばずる
To go viral on social media. From the English word "buzz."
Casual
41
ビジュ びじゅ
Short for 'visual' — a trendy way to talk about someone's looks. Borrowed from K-POP fan culture, where each group has a designated 'visual member' (the best-looking one).
Casual
42
微妙 びみょう
In everyday speech, a polite way of saying 'meh' — not terrible, but definitely not good.
Neutral
43
ブラック企業 ぶらっくきぎょう
A company that exploits its workers — long hours, no pay, toxic bosses
Casual
44
ボケ ぼけ
The funny one in a comedy duo — or a blunt way to call someone an idiot (especially common in Kansai as a light jab).
Casual
45
チル ちる
To chill out and relax — borrowed straight from English and given a Japanese twist.
Casual
46
ダサい ださいい
Uncool, lame, or out of style — the go-to word for calling out bad taste.
Casual
47
ディスる でぃする
To diss / trash-talk — from English "disrespect," turned into a Japanese verb
Casual
48
ドン引き どんびき
To be so put off by someone's behavior that you mentally recoil.
Casual
49
ドンマイ どんまい
No worries!' — a wasei-eigo pick-me-up borrowed from English 'don't mind.' Used to brush off minor setbacks, but increasingly also used mockingly to mean 'tough luck for them.'
Casual
50
ドタキャン どたきゃん
Bailing on plans at the very last minute — a portmanteau of 'last moment' and 'cancel.'
Casual
51
エモい えもい
Emotionally moving — from English "emotional"
Casual
52
エンジョイ勢 えんじょいぜい
The 'in it for the fun' crowd — casual players who prioritize enjoyment over winning. The opposite of ガチ勢 (gachi-zei, hardcore players).
Casual
53
フラグ ふらぐ
A narrative 'flag' — a sign that foreshadows what's coming next. 'Death flag,' 'romance flag,' and the joy of watching flags get raised and triggered.
Casual
54
ガチャ がちゃ
From capsule toys to mobile games to life itself — the randomness-is-fate word
Casual
55
ガチ勢 がちぜい
The 'dead serious' crowd — people who go all-in on a hobby or activity. The opposite of エンジョイ勢 (enjoy-zei, casual players).
Casual
56
ガチ がち
"Dead serious" / "legit" — like マジ but cranked up a notch
Casual
57
ギリギリ ぎりぎり
Just barely, by the skin of your teeth — cutting it impossibly close.
Casual
58
ググる ぐぐる
To google something. 'Gugutte' means 'look it up.'
Casual
59
ギュられる ぎゅられる
Internet slang meaning "to get wiped out by the AI singularity" — i.e., to have your job, skills, or relevance taken over by AI. Built from a clipped, Japanified version of the English word "singularity" plus the Japanese passive ending "-rareru."
Casual
60
一応 いちおう
Just in case' / 'sort of' — a hedge word that softens everything it touches.
Neutral
61
イケてる いけてる
Cool, stylish, looking good — the opposite of ダサい.
Casual
62
陰キャ いんきゃ
Someone who's introverted and quiet — short for '陰気なキャラクター' (gloomy character).
Casual
63
結構 けっこう
A versatile word meaning 'quite,' 'enough,' or 'no thank you' depending on context.
Neutral
64
キモい きもい
Short for 'kimochi warui' (gross/disgusting) — a blunt, high-damage insult
Casual
65
貴様 きさま
A second-person pronoun familiar from anime. In modern Japanese, it's essentially a hostile insult.
Casual
66
コイツ こいつ
A rough way to say "this guy" or "this thing." Sounds blunt and can be rude depending on context.
Casual
67
この野郎 このやろう
A heated insult meaning 'you bastard' — for real anger or joking between close friends.
Casual
68
コスパ こすぱ
Short for "cost performance" — means bang for your buck
Neutral
69
空気 くうき
The unspoken mood of a room — the invisible social atmosphere everyone is expected to read.
Neutral
70
草 くさ
The Japanese "lol" — literally "grass," born from how "wwwww" looks like grass growing
Casual
71
空気読む くうきよむ
To read the room — sensing the unspoken mood and acting accordingly.
Casual
72
KY けーわい
Stands for 'Kuuki ga Yomenai' — someone who can't read the room.
Casual
73
マジ まじ
"Seriously" / "for real" — the go-to intensifier in everyday Japanese
Casual
74
めっちゃ めっちゃ
The go-to intensifier meaning "very" or "super" — originally Kansai dialect, now used everywhere in Japan
Casual
75
港区女子 みなとくじょし
Women who party in Tokyo's flashiest district — glamorous but loaded with judgment
Casual
76
港区 みなとく
Tokyo's richest ward — used as slang for wealth, status, and a certain lifestyle
Neutral
77
マウント まうんと
Flexing your superiority — the act of one-upping someone to establish dominance. Used in 'マウントを取る' (to take the mount / to flex on someone).
Casual
78
無理 むり
"I can't" / "I'm done" — the one-word shutdown for when you've hit your limit, good or bad.
Casual
79
ネタバレ ねたばれ
Spoiling a story's plot — the Japanese word for 'spoiler.'
Casual