猫娘
nekomusume[ne̞ko̞mɯ̟sɨme̞]
The English phrase 'catgirl' is translated into Japanese as 猫娘 (nekomusume). If unsure, use 猫娘. Wiktionary also lists 猫耳 (nekomimi).
Meaning: female character with feline characteristics (noun)
Ways to say it
| Japanese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| 猫娘 | nekomusume | [ne̞ko̞mɯ̟sɨme̞] (narrow) |
| 猫耳 | nekomimi | [ne̞ko̞mʲimʲi] (narrow) |
The term refers to a female character possessing feline characteristics.
Which one should you use?
While 猫娘 (nekomusume) refers to the character as a whole, 猫耳 (nekomimi) literally means 'cat ears' and is often used to refer to the specific aesthetic or the character type itself. You can also combine these into 猫耳娘 (nekomimi musume) to specifically denote a 'girl with cat ears'.
How do you pronounce it?
nekomusume
Did you know?
- In Japanese pop culture, characters with 猫耳 are often distinguished from 'beastfolk' by whether their ears are biological or part of a headband, leading to different social categories in fan communities.
- The word 娘 (musume), which is part of the term for catgirl, originally meant 'daughter' in a strictly familial sense before evolving into a way to refer to young women in fiction.
- While an English speaker says 'catgirl', a Japanese speaker might simply use the English loanword 'cat girl' written in katakana as キャットガール (kyatto gāru) to describe the same trope.
Examples in context
- 猫耳娘が毛玉を吐いちゃった。The catgirl coughed up a hairball.This sentence shows how to use the form 猫耳娘 in a description.Tatoeba #10559270 by DJ_Saidez, translation #10559098 by shekitten
- あのアニメには可愛い猫耳の少女がいますThat anime features a cute catgirl.
- 彼女はゲームに出てくる猫娘だ。Kanojo wa geemu ni detekuru nekomusume da.She is a catgirl who appears in the game.
- そのアニメの猫娘はとても可愛い。Sono anime no nekomusume wa totemo kawaii.The catgirl in that anime is very cute.
Example conversation
Misaki and Ren are looking at anime merchandise at a store.
- 美咲 Misaki見て、蓮！この猫娘のフィギュア、すごくない？Mite, Ren! Kono neko musume no figyua, sugukunai?Look, Ren! Isn't this catgirl figure amazing?
- 蓮 Ren本当だね。造形がとても細かいよ。Hontō da ne. Zōkei ga totemo komakai yo.You're right. The detail is very fine.
- 美咲 Misakiやっぱり猫娘は最高に可愛いと思うの。Yappari neko musume wa saikō ni kawaii to omou no.I really think catgirls are the cutest.
- 蓮 Ren美咲がそう言うなら、買えばいいんじゃない？Misaki ga sō iu nara, kaeba ii n janai?If you say so, Misaki, why don't you just buy it?
Sources
- Wiktionary, “catgirl” translations and entries 猫娘, 猫耳, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
