自虐

• 読み: じぎゃく
• ローマ字: jigyaku
• 漢字の分解: 自 (self) + 虐 (torment/abuse) → self-torment, putting oneself down
• 発音: /dʑi.ɡʲa.kɯ/

意味

Self-deprecation; putting yourself down, often for humour or to deflect attention.

自虐 is a widely used social strategy in Japan — making fun of yourself before anyone else can. It overlaps with 謙遜 (humility) but is more active and often more exaggerated. 自虐ネタ (self-deprecating jokes) are a staple of Japanese comedy, and social media is full of self-deprecating posts about being single, broke, or bad at life.

例文

1. 自虐ばっかりだと心配になるからほどほどにね。
2. 自虐で笑いを取るのがあの人のスタイル。
3. また自虐始まった、本当はそんなこと思ってないくせに。

使い方ガイド

場面: comedy, social media, self-introduction, casual conversation

トーン: humorous, self-deprecating

正しい言い方

• 自虐ネタで場を和ませるのがうまいね (You're good at lightening the mood with self-deprecating jokes)
• 自虐はほどほどにしないと本当に自己肯定感下がるよ (If you don't moderate your self-deprecation, your self-esteem will actually drop)

避ける言い方

• 本当に悩んでいる人の発言を「自虐でしょ」と軽く流さない (Don't dismiss genuinely troubled people by saying 'oh, you're just being self-deprecating')

よくある間違い

• Not recognising when 自虐 crosses from humour to genuine self-loathing — the line can be thin
• Trying to match Japanese-level self-deprecation as a foreigner — it can come across as fishing for compliments rather than genuine humour

起源と歴史

From 自 (self) + 虐 (torment/abuse) — literally 'self-torment.' While the kanji suggest severity, modern usage is predominantly humorous. Self-deprecation has long been a favoured comedy style in Japanese culture.

文化的背景

時代: Long-standing comedy tradition, amplified by social media

世代: All ages (especially prominent online)

社会的背景: Universal

地域メモ: Used across all of Japan. Self-deprecating humour is a dominant style in Japanese comedy and social media culture.