Onna Kotoba - Traditional Characteristics of Japanese Men's Speech

Traditional Characteristics of Japanese Men's Speech

Just as there are modes of speaking and behaviour that are considered intrinsically feminine, there are also those that are considered intrinsically masculine. In speech, being otokorashii (男らしい, "manly" or "masculine") means speaking in a lower register, using fewer polite forms and using them in fewer situations, and using intrinsically masculine words.

In particular, men use particular masculine personal pronouns, use the informal ("da") in place of the copula desu, use masculine sentence finals such as zo, and use honorific prefixes less frequently than women.

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