42 JK Slang Words: Japanese High School Girl Slang, Current and Retro

💡 The all-purpose way to agree, and still very much in use. You can answer almost any complaint with it. With older people, say "so desu ne" instead.

💡 Cut down from ryokai (understood); ri is the even shorter version. It's for texting close friends only. To a teacher or boss, write "wakarimashita" or "shochi shimashita."

💡 Oke (OK) plus maru (a circle, which also means "correct" in Japan). It had its moment in the late 2010s and now sounds a little dated; plain "oke" or "okke" is more common today.

💡 Azasu (a clipped arigato) becomes azamaru, and suisan (seafood company) is added for pure silliness. It was a late-2010s hit and is dated now, so it's used mainly as a self-aware joke.

💡 It imitates a tiny whimper and goes with the teary pleading-face emoji. It became huge around the turn of the 2020s; it's a bit worn now but everyone knows it. Use it for small disappointments, never real grief.

💡 Paon is how Japanese writes an elephant's trumpeting, so it's bigger tears than pien. It came after pien and was never as common, which makes it feel a bit dated now.

💡 "Past pien, all the way to paon." It's a jokey escalation that shows your sadness is dramatic, not serious. It now sounds like early-2020s nostalgia.

💡 From kimazui (awkward), with the letter Z standing in for the sound zu. It was a late-2010s texting fad and is dated now. The spoken "kimazu" or "kimazui" is still normal.

💡 An old classical form of yoi (good), used playfully; doubled as "yoki yoki" it's extra approving. Still heard in the 2020s, and even older people understand it because it's old Japanese, which is part of the joke.

💡 Clipped from chinami ni (by the way) and mostly typed, not spoken. Nothing to do with the country. In a work message, write the full chinami ni.

💡 Squeezed from toriaezu maa (well, for now). It has been around for a while, so some teens find it a bit old, but it's still heard. Too sloppy for anyone older.

💡 Ari means "allowed" or "possible," and nashi is the opposite. "Sore nashi" is a friendly no. Still current and easy to use.

💡 Variations show fine shades: "nashi yori no ari" (barely yes), "ari yori no nashi" (leaning no). A late-2010s favorite; it's less common now but still understood.

💡 A pun on Tokaidochu Hizakurige, a famous Edo-period comic travel novel, swapping in ryokai (understood). It's the kind of wordplay teens use ironically and dads use sincerely; anyone who catches the reference will laugh.

💡 The initials of kanpai (cheers). It's used more by college students and young adults at parties than by high schoolers, who toast with juice. Never at a company dinner; say "kanpai" there.

💡 Short for joshi kosei. Girls use it about themselves ("JK life"), but when adults, especially men, use it about girls, it can sound uncomfortable. As a visitor, say koko-sei (high school student).

💡 JC is joshi chugakusei, JD is joshi daigakusei, and DK (danshi kosei) is a high school boy. The same caution as JK applies: fine about yourself, awkward from an adult about others.

💡 "Last JK," the third and final year; FJK and SJK are first and second years. It carries the rush to enjoy school life before graduation. Mostly seen on social media bios.

💡 Literally "mass-produced model." It names a soft style with pastels, frills, and ribbons, often linked to idol-fan fashion. Some wear the label happily, but said about someone else it can mean "cookie-cutter," so be careful.

💡 A fashion style with black and pink, ribbons, and deliberately teary-looking eye makeup that became popular around the start of the 2020s. The name literally means "landmine type" and began as a teasing label for people seen as hard to deal with, so talk about it as a style and never use it to label a person.

💡 From English "gal." Its heyday was the 1990s and 2000s, with tans, bleached hair, and big makeup. The look has changed, but the image of someone upbeat and confident lives on, and "kokoro wa gyaru" is a compliment among teens. Don't use gyaru to mean just any young woman.

💡 A peace sign flipped with the palm facing in and pushed toward the camera. An old gyaru-era pose that came back among teens in the early 2020s and then spread overseas through social media. Fun and harmless.

💡 From English "now," it spread with Twitter in Japan around 2010. It sounds clearly dated today, and teens use it mostly as a retro joke. Many adults in their 30s know it well.

💡 Geki (intense) plus oko (from okoru, to get angry) plus punpun (huffing) plus maru (an old name ending). An early-2010s hit that is retro now. It shows annoyance while signaling you're not truly angry.

💡 Wakaru (to understand) turned into a noun with -mi, then called "deep." A late-2010s favorite that now sounds slightly dated; plain "wakaru" is the everyday reply.

💡 From zutto tomodachi (friends forever), a staple of gyaru-style messages. It feels a little retro and sweet now, and you'll still find it scribbled in yearbook messages.

💡 Short for itsumo no menba (the usual members). Still common. Side note: McDonald's is makku in the Tokyo area and makudo around Osaka.

💡 Uchi (I, originally common in western Japan) plus -ra (plural). Many girls across Japan use it now; boys more often say oretachi. Very casual, so not for polite speech.

💡 Clipped from osoroi (a matching set). Friends match keychains, phone cases, and socks as a sign of closeness. Still current.

💡 Futago (twins) plus kode (from coordinate, an outfit). Friends dress identically, often for theme parks or concerts. Some say "rinku kode" for outfits that match in color or theme rather than exactly.

💡 Kareshi (boyfriend) cut to kare plus a cute pi. Related: kanopi (girlfriend) and sukipi (a crush). Sweet and slightly silly; parents may tease you for it.

💡 Gyan- works as a strong intensifier in front of kawaii (cute). It's a loud, happy compliment among friends. With older people, a simple "kawaii" is plenty.

💡 From jiwajiwa kuru (it creeps up on you). For things that aren't laugh-out-loud funny but keep getting funnier. It grew online and is now everyday talk.

💡 Tapioka plus the verb ending -ru. It was born in the huge bubble tea boom of the late 2010s and now feels like a time capsule. A perfect example of how quickly teen slang ages.

💡 A popular way for friends to celebrate being students, especially around graduation. Some recent graduates put the uniform on one last time for it. It's the name of an activity, not really slang you'd use in other ways.

💡 Short for purikura, the photo-sticker booths in game centers. Teens say "puri toru" (take puri) and swap the results. Current, and a big part of hanging out.

💡 A playful reading of seishun (youth), whose kanji literally mean "blue spring." Used for moments that feel like a coming-of-age movie. Adults use it too, a little wistfully.

💡 The initials of kuki (ga) yomenai, "can't read the air." It was everywhere in the late 2000s and sounds dated now, but everyone still understands it. Calling someone KY is a put-down.

💡 The manji is a Buddhist symbol that marks temples on Japanese maps; around the late 2010s teens used "maji manji" as a vague word for hype or chaos. It's quite dated now. Avoid the symbol in messages to people outside Japan, where it can be mistaken for a hate symbol.

💡 Age (up, as in feeling up) plus poyo, a cute nonsense ending; the opposite is sagepoyo. It's gyaru slang from around 2010 and retro now, used only for laughs.

💡 The initials of maji de kireru go-byo mae (five seconds from really losing it). A 1990s kogal classic that today works only as a retro joke; people who were teens in the 1990s will get it instantly.

💡 Cho (super) plus beri (very) plus bad or good. It's the icon of 1990s kogal speech from the era of loose socks and pagers. Nobody says it seriously today, but many people in their 40s and 50s will smile if you do.