| Terms |
(Literal) Translation |
Meaning |
| 元气 |
Genki |
Energetic/cheerful person. |
| 腐女 |
Fujoshi (rotten girl) |
Japanese term for girls who are fans of BL novels, manga, etc. |
| 萌 |
Moe (new sprouts appearing from the ground) |
On the contrary, to what Moe originally meant, it turned into a slang for describing one’s emotional affections towards a 2D character. (games, novels, manga, etc) |
| 御姐 |
Onee-san |
Older sister character type. |
| 女王 |
Queen |
Dominating character |
| 正太 |
Shota |
Little boy. |
| 萝莉 |
Loli |
Little girl. |
| 乙女 |
Otome |
Young maiden. |
| 中二病 |
Chuunibyou |
8th grader syndrome. Time period when person (usually around 14yrs old) is under the delusions that world spins around them (they are the greatest, main characters of the world. Etc). Usually used in anime for characters thinking they have superpowers. |
| 天然呆 |
Tennen Boke (Natural Airhead) |
A person that naturally acts clueless/stupid/unaware |
| 秀吉 |
Hideyoshi |
Hideyoshi is a term for a character that is “neither male nor female” in other words, characters who are hard to categorize as either purely a boy or a girl.
Anyone with characteristics like that of Hideyoshi Kinoshita from Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu. |
| 傲娇 |
Tsundere |
Character who is acting cold (tsuntsun) on the outside while being lovestuck (deredere) inside. |
| 病娇 |
Yandere (sickly lovestuck) |
Character who would use any violent means to be with his/her lover. |
| 黑化 |
Blacken |
Originating from Fate / Stay Night, when Saber gets transformed into Saber Alter. This basically describes someone that has drastically changed or “fallen”.
Literally, it means when a character undergoes a sudden “dark/sinister” change. |
| 腹黑 |
Haraguro |
Someone who has an evil inside, but often acts kind and innocent in appearance |
| 毒舌 |
Dokuzetsu |
A poison tongued person. |
| 猫耳娘 |
Nekomimi Girl |
Cat ear girl |
| 兔耳娘 |
Usagimimi girl |
Rabbit ear girl |
| 鬼畜 |
Demon |
Demonic/Savage personality. |
| 幼驯染 |
Osananajimi |
Childhood friend |
| (爆发)小宇宙 |
Cosmos |
Reference to Saint Seiya’s Cosmos power-up. |
| 纳尼 |
Nani |
Japanese term for “what” |
| 伪娘 |
Fake girl / Tomgirl |
Trap/crossdressing character that could be mistaken for a girl. |
| KUSO |
Kuso |
Japanese slang for swearing “damn, s̲h̲i̲t̲, etc” |
| 口癖 |
Speech habit |
Kuchiguse in Japanese is used for a word (or sometimes a phrase) that a person uses often in a conversations. (eg: Nya, Nano desu, Dattebayo) |
| 残念 |
Zannen |
Regrets/bad luck. |
| 控 |
-con |
-complex |
| 百合 |
Girl’s Love |
Yuri action |
| 死库水 |
Sukumizu |
School swimsuit |
| 工口 |
Ero |
( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) |
| 绝对领域 |
Absolute Territory |
The space between girl’s knee socks and skirt. |
| 杀必死 |
Service |
2D fan service. |
| 达令 |
Darling |
Referring to a character with Darling. |
| 卖肉 |
Selling meat |
Fan service. |
| 赛高 |
Saikou |
Referring to something or someone as “best/supreme/highest level” |
| 推倒 |
Push down |
Push down in a sexual way |
| 暴走 |
Boso |
Running wild/rampaging character. |
| 吐槽 |
Retort / Tsukkomi |
Tsukkomi – retort or in other words, “playing a straight man”. |
| (收到)好人卡 |
Good person card / Rejected |
More specifically, it’s getting rejected with something along the lines of “You’re a good person, but we can’t be together.” |
| 软妹(子) |
Soft sister |
A girl that’s kind and easy to push around, while also having a good personality |
| 本命 |
Honmei (Favorite) |
The most popular character(s) in a series. (best waifu/husbando) |
| 布鲁马 |
Bloomer |
|
| -君 |
-kun |
Honorific mostly used by seniors addressing to juniors, or among male friends.
Although, it’s usually used for men, it’s not a strict rule. |
| -酱 |
-chan |
A honorific usually used with children or people who you are close to. |
| 无路赛 |
Urusai
Literally means “annoying, Noisy”. |
JP for “Shut up!” |
| (满头)黑线 |
Black lines |
A show of speechlessness. |
| 欧尼桑 |
onii-san |
Japanese slang for big brother. |
| 欧内桑 |
onee-san |
Japanese slang for big sister. |
| 一抹多 |
Imouto |
Japanese loanword for younger sister. |
| 兽人 |
Demi-human |
Depicts humanoid creature such as elves, dwarves, beastmen, etc. |
| 猪头人 |
Orc |
Literally: Pig-headed man. A demihuman or monsters with pig features, especially their head. |
| 兽人 |
Beastman |
A demihuman with animal features, such as beast ears or tail. |
| 魔兽 |
Magic Beast |
Magically enhanced beasts that are commonly seen in fantasy world. |
| 阴阳师 |
Onmyoji |
Onmyōji were specialists in magic and divination. Their court responsibilities ranged from tasks such as keeping track of the calendar, to mystical duties such as divination and protection of the capital from evil spirits. They could divine auspicious or harmful influences in the earth, and were instrumental in the moving of capitals. It is said that an onmyōji could also summon and control shikigami. |
| 式神 |
Shikigami |
Shikigami (式神, also read as Shiki-no-kami, 式の神) is the term for a being from Japanese folklore. It is thought to be some sort of kami, represented by a small ghost. The belief of shikigami originates from Onmyōdō. |
| 烏帽子 / 乌帽 |
Eboshi Cap |
烏帽子 (hiragana えぼし, rōmaji eboshi) A type of black-lacquered court cap originating during the Heian period, previously worn only by men of a particular social status, and now worn in certain Shinto ceremonies and by gyoji presiding over sumo matches |
| 和钢 |
Alloy |
A metal made by combining two or more metallic elements, especially to give greater strength or resistance to corrosion. |
| 御币 |
Gohei |
Gohei (御幣), onbe (御幣), or heisoku (幣束) are wooden wands, decorated with two shide (zigzagging paper streamers) used in Shinto rituals. |
| 巫女 |
Miko |
In Shinto, a miko (巫女) is a shrine maiden or a supplementary priestess. Miko were once likely seen as a shaman but are understood in modern Japanese culture to be an institutionalized role in daily shrine life, trained to perform tasks, ranging from sacred cleansing to performing the sacred Kagura dance. |
| 和服 |
Kimono |
Traditional national clothing. |
| 浴衣 |
Yukata |
Literally translates to bathrobe. |
| 忍术 |
Ninjutsu |
Sometimes used interchangeably with the modern term ninpō, is the strategy and tactics of unconventional warfare, guerrilla warfare and espionage purportedly practiced by the ninja |
| 异世界 |
Otherworld |
Isekai, Parallel World, etc. |
| 兜裆布 |
Fundoshi |
Fundoshi (褌, ふんどし) is the traditional Japanese undergarment for adult males, made from a length of cotton. Before World War II, the fundoshi was the main form of underwear for Japanese adult males. However it fell out of use quickly after the war with the introduction of new underwear to the Japanese market, such as briefs and boxer briefs.
Nowadays, the fundoshi is mainly used not as underwear but as festival (matsuri) clothing at Hadaka Matsuri or, sometimes, as swimwear.” |
| 石翁 |
Stone Carvings |
Sekibutsu 石仏
Stone Carvings of Buddhist Deities
Courtesy of JAANUS (excellent dictionary of Buddhist concepts). Sekibutsu literally means “Stone Buddha.” A Buddhist image made in rock or stone. The term sekizou 石造 or “”carving from stone”” was used to indicate the material of a sculptured work. Sekibutsu were divided broadly into two groups” |
| 争夷大将军 / 征夷大将軍 |
Shogun |
The Shōgun (将軍, Japanese: [ɕoːɡɯɴ] (About this soundlisten); English: /ˈʃoʊɡʌn/ SHOH-gun) was the military dictator of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shōguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, though during part of the Kamakura period shōguns were themselves figureheads. The office of shōgun was in practice hereditary, though over the course of the history of Japan several different clans held the position. Shōgun is the short form of Sei-i Taishōgun (征夷大将軍, “Commander-in-Chief of the Expeditionary Force Against the Barbarians”), a high military title from the Heian period. When Minamoto no Yoritomo gained political ascendency over Japan in 1185, the title was revived to regularize his position, making him the first shōgun in the usually understood sense. |
| 太政大臣 |
Chancellor |
The Daijō-daijin or Dajō-daijin (太政大臣, “Chancellor of the Realm”) was the head of the Daijō-kan (Great Council of State) during and after the Nara period and briefly under the Meiji Constitution. Equivalent to the Chinese Taishi (太師) (Grand Preceptor). |
| 中纳言 |
Middle Counselor |
Chūnagon (中納言) was a counselor of the second rank in the Imperial court of Japan. The role dates from the 7th century.
The role was eliminated from the Imperial hierarchy in 701, but it was re-established in 705. This advisory position remained a part of the Imperial court from the 8th century until the Meiji period in the 19th century.” |
| 狩衣 |
Hunting Robe |
Also called kariginu in Japan, a traditional hunting robe worn by nobles during the Heian period. |
| 皮铁 |
Skin Steel |
It is harder but relatively less tough, would be made into the outer layer of the sword. |
| 心铁 |
Core Steel |
This is relatively soft, but very tough and elastic, serves as the inner core of the sword. |
| 刀茎 |
Tang |
A tang or shank is the back portion of the blade component of a tool where it extends into stock material or connects to a handle. The craftsman usually engrave their name on the tang of the blade. |
| 百鬼夜行 |
Night Parade of One Hundred Demons |
Hyakki Yagyō, variation: Hyakki Yakō, (百鬼夜行, “Night Parade of One Hundred Demons”) is an idiom in Japanese folklore. Sometimes an orderly procession, other times a riot, it refers to an uncontrolled horde of countless numbers of supernatural creatures known as oni and yōkai. As a terrifying eruption of the supernatural world into our own, it is similar (though not precisely equivalent) to the concept of pandemonium in English. |
| 彼岸 |
Higanbana flower |
The Japanese common name Higanbana (彼岸花, Higan bana) for Lycoris radiata literally means “flower of higan (the other shore of Sanzu River, or a Buddist holiday around the autumnal equinox)”. In Japan the red spider lily signals the arrival of fall. Another popular Japanese name for Lycoris radiata is Manjushage (曼珠沙華, Manjusha-ge or Manjusha-ke), taken from the name of a mythical flower described in Chinese translation of the Lotus Sutra. It is called by over 1000 other local names in Japan. |
| 豪族 |
Prominent Clan |
Gōzoku (豪族, lit. “prominent clan”) is a Japanese term used to refer to powerful and wealthy families. In historical context, it usually refers to local samurai clans with significant local land holdings. Some were almost locally independent, and held strong ties to important commoners such as wealthy merchants. Unlike the vassal samurai of the greater lords, gozōku may or may not have held court rank or served directly under a liege. They tended to be financially secure and, if under a liege, less dependent upon him for income. |
| 绳文 |
Rope-patterned |
The Jōmon pottery (縄文土器, Jōmon doki) is a type of ancient earthenware pottery which was made during the Jōmon period in Japan. The term “Jōmon” (縄文) means “rope-patterned” in Japanese, describing the patterns that are pressed into the clay. |
| 武士 |
Samurai |
First rank a Swordsman receives after passing the basic test. |
| 剑豪 |
Kengo |
Sword Master |
| 剑圣 |
Kensei |
Sword Saint |
| 下忍 |
Genin |
First rank a ninja receives after passing the basic test. |
| 中忍 |
Chunin |
Chūnin (中忍, Literally meaning: Middle Ninja, Meaning (Viz): Journeyman Ninja) are ninja who have reached a level of maturity and ability that primarily consists of leadership skills and tactical prowess. |
| 上忍 |
Jonin |
Jonin (上忍, Jōnin, Literally meaning: High Ninja, Meaning (Viz): Elite Ninja) are generally highly experienced and highly skilled shinobi who serve as military captains. |
| 玉钢 |
Tamahagane |
“Tamahagane (玉鋼) is a type of steel made in the Japanese tradition. The word tama means “”round and precious””, like a gem. The word hagane means “”steel””. Tamahagane is used to make Japanese swords, knives, and other kinds of tools.
The carbon content of the majority of analyzed japanese sword historically lies between 0.5~0.7 mass%, however the range extends up to 1.5%.” |
| 和歌 |
Waka |
Waka (和歌, “Japanese poem”) is a type of poetry in classical Japanese literature. Although waka in modern Japanese is written as 和歌, in the past it was also written as 倭歌 (see Wa (Japan)), and a variant name is yamato-uta (大和歌). |
| 马猴烧酒 |
Mahou Shoujo |
Japanese loanword for Magical Girl. |
