猫耳少女
nekomimi shōjo
The English phrase "cat girl" is translated into Japanese as 猫耳少女 (nekomimi shōjo).
The phrase refers to a girl or female character who possesses cat ears and sometimes a tail. You can also use the shorter term 猫耳 on its own to refer specifically to the cat ear aesthetic or the physical trait itself.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of 猫耳 (nekomimi) meaning "cat ears" and 少女 (shōjo) meaning "girl".
How do you pronounce it?
nekomimi shōjo
Did you know?
- In Japanese pop culture, a 'nekomimi' character is often expected to use specific sentence endings like 'nya' or 'nyan' to mimic a cat's meow, a trait rarely seen in English-speaking cat girl characters.
- The appeal of 猫耳 is linked to the Japanese concept of 'gap moe', where the contrast between a human girl's behavior and her feline traits creates a specific type of charm.
- While 少女 means 'girl', the broader subculture of 猫耳 includes the term 猫系 (neko-kei), which describes people who have cat-like personalities regardless of whether they have physical ears.
Examples in context
- 彼女は猫耳少女のキャラクターです。Kanojo wa nekomimi shōjo no kyarakutā desu.She is a cat girl character.
- このゲームには猫耳少女がたくさん出ます。Kono gēmu ni wa nekomimi shōjo ga takusan demasu.Many cat girls appear in this game.
- 可愛い猫耳少女のイラストを描きたいです。Kawaii nekomimi shōjo no irasuto o kakitai desu.I want to draw a cute cat girl illustration.
Example conversation
Yui and Ren are looking at an art book together.
- 結衣 Yui見て、この猫耳少女がすごく可愛いよ！mite, kono nekomimi shoujo ga sugoku kawaii yo!Look, this cat girl is really cute!
- 蓮 Ren本当だね。デザインがとてもいい。hontou da ne. dezain ga totemo ii.You're right. The design is very good.
- 結衣 Yui蓮ならどのキャラクターが好き？ren nara dono kyarakutaa ga suki?Which character do you like, Ren?
- 蓮 Ren僕はやっぱりこの猫耳少女が好きかな。boku wa yappari kono nekomimi shoujo ga suki kana.I think I like this cat girl after all.
