ドン引き
donbiki
The English phrase "your cringe" can be expressed in Japanese as ドン引き (donbiki).
ドン引き is used to describe the feeling of being suddenly put off or recoiling from someone's behavior due to its awkwardness or social inappropriateness.
Which one should you use?
While ドン引き describes the reaction of being put off, you might use 君のキモさ to specifically mean "your creepiness" in an informal context or the slang マジでキツいわ to say "it's painfully awkward."
How does it change in a sentence?
To use this as a verb meaning "to be/feel cringe" or "to be put off", you add the verb suru (to do) to the noun form to create ドン引きする.
How do you pronounce it?
donbiki
Did you know?
- The ドン in ドン引き is an onomatopoeia representing a sudden, heavy sound or a sudden shift. It emphasizes that the feeling of 'cringe' hits the speaker instantly and with great force.
- In Japanese social dynamics, ドン引き is often a result of breaking kyuki wo yomu, the unspoken rule of 'reading the air' to maintain group harmony.
- While ドン引き describes the recoil, Japanese speakers often use the phrase 空気が凍る meaning 'the air freezes' to describe the social atmosphere when someone does something 'cringe'.
Examples in context
- あなたの苦笑いが完全にキモさの表現だったよYour wry smile perfectly expressed the cringe.
- 君のキモさにゾッとしたよI got creeped out by your cringiness.
- マジでキツいわ、もう見ないでくれる？It's painfully awkward. Can you stop watching?
- ドン引きしてしまったI was totally repulsed.
- あの人の発言にはドン引きした。Ano hito no hatsugen ni wa donbiki shita.I was totally cringed out by that person's comment.
- 冗談が全然ウケなくて、周りはドン引きだった。Joudan ga zenzen uketenakute, mawari wa donbiki datta.The joke didn't land at all, and everyone was just cringed out.
- 彼のやりすぎた演出にはドン引きしてしまう。Kare no yarisugita enshutsu ni wa donbiki shite shimau.I can't help but feel cringed out by his over-the-top performance.
Example conversation
Two friends are talking about a weird video they saw online.
- 陽太 Yotaあの動画、ちょっとドン引きしなかった？Ano douga, chotto donbiki shinakatta?Didn't that video make you feel kind of cringed out?
- 結衣 Yuiうん、正直ドン引きだったよ。Un, shoujiki donbiki datta yo.Yeah, honestly, it was totally cringe.
- 陽太 Yota結衣もそう思ったんだね。Yui mo sou omotta nda ne.I'm glad you felt that way too, Yui.
- 結衣 Yui見てるこっちが恥ずかしくなったよ。Miteru kocchi ga hazukashiku natta yo.It made me feel embarrassed just watching it.
