マネージャー

• Reading: マネージャー
• Romaji: maneejaa
• Pronunciation: /ma.neː.dʑaː/

Meaning

Manager. A person who organises, oversees, or supports a team or business operation.

A loanword from English 'manager' with context-dependent meanings in Japanese: (1) in business, a department or store manager (店長 is also used); (2) in sports clubs (especially school clubs), the team manager who handles equipment, scheduling, and logistics rather than playing; (3) in entertainment, a talent manager. The school club マネージャー role is distinctive to Japanese culture and very common in anime and manga.

Examples

1. 高校時代はサッカー部のマネージャーをしていた。 I was the manager of the soccer club in high school.
2. 新しいプロジェクトのマネージャーに任命された。 I was appointed as the manager of the new project.
3. マネージャーがスケジュールを調整してくれた。 The manager took care of arranging the schedule.

Usage Guide

Context: business, school clubs, sports, entertainment

Tone: neutral

Origin & History

From English 'manager,' borrowed into Japanese and written in katakana. The word entered common use during the postwar period as Western business practices and sports culture became widespread in Japan.

Cultural Context

Era: Postwar

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal