出会い系

• 読み: であいけい
• ローマ字: deai kei
• 漢字の分解: 出 (go out) + 会 (meet) + い (connective) + 系 (type/category) → encounter-type service
• 発音: /de.a.i ke.i/

意味

A hookup or dating site/app, often carrying a slightly shady or sleazy connotation compared to modern dating apps.

出会い系 originally referred to early Japanese dating websites from the early 2000s, many of which were associated with scams, catfishing, and compensated dating. While some legitimate services existed, the term retained its negative stigma. Today, people distinguish between the respectable マッチングアプリ and the older, shadier 出会い系.

例文

1. 出会い系ってちょっと怖いイメージあるんだよね。
2. あの人、出会い系で知り合ったらしいよ。
3. 昔は出会い系しかなかったけど、今はマッチングアプリがあるから安心。

使い方ガイド

場面: friends, casual conversation, gossip

トーン: slightly negative, cautious

正しい言い方

• 出会い系はちょっと怖いからマッチングアプリにした。 (Dating sites seem a bit sketchy so I went with a dating app instead.)
• 出会い系ってまだあるの？ (Do those hookup sites still exist?)

避ける言い方

• マッチングアプリを出会い系と呼ぶと嫌がられる (Calling someone's dating app a 出会い系 can offend them — it implies the shadier kind)

よくある間違い

• Using 出会い系 and マッチングアプリ interchangeably — the former has a much more negative connotation

起源と歴史

From 出会い (encounter/meeting) + 系 (type/category). Emerged in the early 2000s with the rise of online dating websites in Japan. The term carries lingering stigma from early sites associated with scams and illegal activity.

文化的背景

時代: Early 2000s, peak stigma mid-2000s

世代: Known by all ages, but the term itself feels dated to younger speakers

社会的背景: Carries class/safety stigma

地域メモ: Used across Japan. The negative connotation is nationwide.