美女
bijo[bʲiʑo̞]
The English phrase "baddie" can be translated into Japanese as 美女 (bijo).
In the context of fiction, 美女 refers to a person of bad character. Separately, related informal expressions like イケてる女子 are used to describe a cool and attractive girl, while イケてる子 describes a cool kid with a fashionable and confident demeanor.
Meaning: a person of bad character in a work of fiction (noun)
How do you pronounce it?
bijo
Did you know?
- In Japanese pop culture, the 'baddie' archetype often blends 美女 with the concept of a 'femme fatale', where beauty is used as a weapon to deceive.
- The term 美女 is a borrowing from Middle Chinese, specifically via the kan'on reading system.
- If you want to describe a 'villainous woman' specifically, you would likely use 悪女 (akujo) rather than 美女.
Example conversation
Hiyori and Ren are discussing a comic book they both read.
- 陽葵 Himariこの漫画の美女、すごく魅力的じゃない？Kono manga no bijo, sugoku miryokuteki janai?Isn't the baddie in this manga really charming?
- 蓮 Ren確かに、でも性格は最悪だよね。Tashika ni, demo seikaku wa saiyaku da yo ne.True, but her personality is the worst.
- 陽葵 Himariだからこそ、いい美女だと思うよ。Dakara koso, ii bijo da to omou yo.That's exactly why I think she's a great baddie.
- 蓮 Renまあ、物語を盛り上げてくれるしね。Mā, monogatari o moriagete kureru shi ne.Well, she does make the story more exciting.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 美女, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 美女, CC BY-SA 4.0.
