SNS & Internet Slang

Japanese internet slang, memes, and social media expressions

Introduction

Japanese internet culture has produced some of the most creative slang online. From 草 (grass = LOL) to 炎上 (going up in flames = getting cancelled), these terms dominate Twitter/X, YouTube comments, and online forums.

This chapter covers the slang born from Japanese internet culture — essential for understanding online Japanese.

Themes

All Japanese Slang in This Chapter (80)

• 草 The Japanese internet equivalent of 'LOL,' used to express amusement or laugh...
• w The letter 'w' appended to the end of text to indicate laughter, equivalent t...
• ネタバレ A spoiler — revealing key plot points, twists, or endings of movies, anime, m...
• バズる To go viral on social media, gaining massive attention, shares, and engagemen...
• 炎上 An online firestorm where someone receives overwhelming negative attention, c...
• アンチ A hater or anti-fan who actively criticizes, trolls, or spreads negativity ab...
• フォロバ Follow back — the act of following someone on social media who already follow...
• リプ A reply to someone's post on Twitter/X or other social media platforms.
• RT Retweet or repost — sharing someone else's post to your own timeline so your ...
• いいね Like — the standard social media reaction of tapping a heart or thumbs-up but...
• タグ付け Tagging — mentioning or linking someone's account in a social media post or p...
• 鍵垢 A private or locked social media account where posts are only visible to appr...
• 裏垢 A secret or anonymous alt account used separately from one's main public acco...
• 本垢 One's main or primary social media account, as opposed to alt or sub accounts.
• サブ垢 A secondary or sub account used alongside one's main account, often dedicated...
• 垢バン Having one's account banned or suspended by a platform for violating terms of...
• 垢消し Deleting one's social media account, often done impulsively after drama, emba...
• エゴサ Ego-searching — the act of searching for your own name, username, or work onl...
• スクショ Screenshot — a captured image of what is displayed on a phone or computer scr...
• タイムライン Timeline or feed — the scrolling stream of posts displayed on social media pl...
• TL Timeline — an abbreviation of タイムライン, referring to the main feed on Twitter/X...
• 浮上 Surfacing online — appearing on social media or in group chats after a period...
• 低浮上 Being rarely online or having low social media activity, often announced as a...
• ツイ廃 A Twitter addict who posts obsessively and spends excessive time on the platf...
• インスタ映え Instagram-worthy — something that looks photogenic and aesthetically pleasing...
• 盛れる To look better than reality in photos, typically thanks to good angles, light...
• 加工 Photo editing or filtering — digitally enhancing photos to improve appearance...
• ストーリー Stories — the ephemeral photo or video posts on Instagram, LINE, or other pla...
• リール Reels — short-form vertical videos on Instagram, typically featuring music, t...
• ショート Shorts — short-form vertical videos on YouTube, typically under 60 seconds.
• 切り抜き A clip or highlight extracted from a longer video, livestream, or broadcast, ...
• まとめ A summary, compilation, or roundup post that aggregates information, reaction...
• コピペ Copy-paste — text that is copied and pasted repeatedly, often referring to vi...
• ネタ Content material, a joke, or source material for humor — anything that serves...
• ミーム A meme — a viral joke format, image template, catchphrase, or concept that sp...
• ネットスラング Internet slang — informal language, abbreviations, and expressions used in on...
• オフ会 An offline meetup where people who know each other from the internet meet fac...
• DM Direct message — a private message sent to someone on social media, separate ...
• 既読スルー Being left on read — when someone reads your message (shown by the read recei...
• 既読無視 Ignoring a message after reading it — essentially the same as 既読スルー but with ...
• 未読スルー Intentionally not opening a message to avoid showing a read receipt — a step ...
• スタンプ A sticker or stamp used in LINE messaging — large illustrated images that con...
• ガチ恋距離 An extremely close-up camera angle used by streamers or idols, as if the view...
• 投げ銭 A monetary tip or donation given to a performer or streamer during a live bro...
• スパチャ Abbreviation of Super Chat — a paid highlighted message on YouTube livestream...
• メンシ Short for メンバーシップ (membership) — a paid subscription to a streamer or content...
• 同接 Abbreviation of 同時接続 — the number of concurrent viewers watching a livestream...
• 配信 A livestream or broadcast — the act of streaming content live to an online au...
• 生配信 A live broadcast or real-time stream — emphasizing that the content is happen...
• アーカイブ A saved recording of a livestream that viewers can watch after the broadcast ...
• コラボ A collaboration between two or more content creators, streamers, or brands — ...
• 案件 Sponsored content or a paid promotion deal — when a creator is paid by a comp...
• サムネ Abbreviation of サムネイル (thumbnail) — the preview image for a video, article, o...
• サブスク Abbreviation of サブスクリプション — a subscription service, especially for streaming ...
• ポチる To click-buy something online, especially an impulse purchase — the act of pr...
• ググる To google something — to search for information online using a search engine.
• タグる To search by hashtag on social media — specifically browsing content through ...
• ブロック To block someone on social media or messaging apps, preventing them from cont...
• ミュート To mute someone on social media — hiding their posts from your timeline witho...
• 晒す To publicly expose or shame someone online by sharing their personal informat...
• 特定 The act of identifying or doxxing someone online — tracking down their real i...
• 凸する To raid, barge into, or unexpectedly join someone's livestream — often uninvi...
• 荒らし A troll or griefer who deliberately disrupts online communities, chat rooms, ...
• 釣り Bait or clickbait — content designed to lure reactions, clicks, or arguments ...
• マジレス A serious, earnest reply to something that was meant as a joke or is not wort...
• ネット民 Internet users or netizens — the collective online population, often referenc...
• ROM専 A lurker — someone who only reads content without posting, commenting, or par...
• 過疎 Dead, inactive, or deserted — used to describe an online community, chat, or ...
• 過密 Overcrowded or too active — used for an online space, server, or chat that is...
• ディスコ Discord — the abbreviated way Japanese internet users refer to the Discord ch...
• 鯖 Server — internet slang using the kanji for mackerel fish because サバ sounds l...
• 通知 A notification or push alert from an app, social media platform, or messaging...
• 拡散希望 Please share/retweet/spread the word — a request to help information reach a ...
• トレンド A trending topic on social media — something currently popular or widely disc...
• おすすめ The 'recommended' or 'for you' page on social media platforms — content curat...
• アルゴリズム The algorithm — the system that determines what content appears in your socia...
• タイパ Time performance — the efficiency or value gained relative to the time invest...
• コスパ Cost performance — the value or quality you get relative to the price paid, e...
• ファボ A like or favorite on social media — from the old Twitter 'favorite' (star) b...
• バズツイ A viral tweet — a post that has blown up with massive likes, retweets, and at...