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Senpai finally noticed me (by Merriam Webster)

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J

johnsmith

remember me
Yandere and tsundere up next, I bet.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/senpai-is-real
Has senpai noticed you? Are you sure? WOW. We are SO happy for you.
If you understand what we're talking about you might be an anime and/or manga fan. Or spend a lot of time on Tumblr. Or be a millennial. Or whatever comes after the millennials (which is probably Generation Z, but the jury is still out on that designation).

In informal use, senpai (also styled as sempai) can refer to anyone whose attention you want to get—that could be someone you admire and want to be friends with or someone you're interested in romantically.
Senpai made its first appearance in Urban Dictionary back in 2004, when a user defined it as "an upperclassman." Other entries (a number of which mention anime and manga) have since been added; it's defined there variously as "someone older than you," "someone you look up to," "mentor," "senior," an "older person who you adore." There are more.
The top definition (as chosen by users) is "someone who will never notice you."
Which is sad, because as KnowYourMeme tells us, it's all about getting senpai to notice you. In anime and manga, there are frequently characters trying to get the love or attention of a senpai, and phrases about being noticed by senpai have become popular catchphrases.
In the world of published, edited English text, however, senpai has a narrower range of meaning. It typically refers to a mentor

The term is perhaps on its way to joining sensei, which is defined in this dictionary as "a teacher or instructor usually of Japanese martial arts (such as karate or judo)." Our earliest evidence of sensei being used in English is from 1968. In Japanese the word is used more broadly to mean "teacher" or "master." Like sensei, senpai is used in English in contexts of martial arts as well as religious instruction, in particular Buddhism. Sensei in those contexts refers to someone of a higher rank than senpai.

Senpai is not yet a fully naturalized member of the English language, as the frequent glosses of it in context demonstrate.
But senpai is real. Which we know will be reassuring to a certain set.

Words We're Watching talks about words we are increasingly seeing in use but that have not yet met our criteria for entry.
Click to expand...
 
V

Valkerionseven

Member
Please no.

I already had to explain the type of people who use "kawaii in English speaking countries and why it's weird two weeks ago and yes it's officially in the textbooks here, don't make me do this one too.
 
Z

Zyrox

Member
Regulus Tera said:
ANIME HAS WON
Click to expand...

putting-gun-to-head.gif
 
E

Eusis

Member
Regulus Tera said:
ANIME HAS WON
Click to expand...
This was my first thought.

The second thought was "oh right this is how the English language works", as in breaking into the homes of other languages and pilfering whatever words it likes. It already broke into Japan for tsunami, sushi, and karaoke, now it's back for some more words to make off with.
 
K

Kinsei

Banned
Can we go back to crotchety old men being the ones to steal words from other languages? People my age are shit.
 
Z

Zaptruder

Banned
Dictionaries are a trailing indicator of language usage. They don't determine how language is used. Only those that use it do.
 
H

hosannainexcelsis

Member
Eusis said:
This was my first thought.

The second thought was "oh right this is how the English language works", as in breaking into the homes of other languages and pilfering whatever words it likes. It already broke into Japan for tsunami, sushi, and karaoke, now it's back for some more words to make off with.
Click to expand...

Japan has taken in plenty of English loan words as well over the past century, so you know, give and take.
 
A

AntraxSuicide

Banned
Eusis said:
This was my first thought.

The second thought was "oh right this is how the English language works", as in breaking into the homes of other languages and pilfering whatever words it likes. It already broke into Japan for tsunami, sushi, and karaoke, now it's back for some more words to make off with.
Click to expand...

Well, yes, but I'd prefer loan words to not be from anime :(
 
M

mdubs

Banned
Eusis said:
This was my first thought.

The second thought was "oh right this is how the English language works", as in breaking into the homes of other languages and pilfering whatever words it likes. It already broke into Japan for tsunami, sushi, and karaoke, now it's back for some more words to make off with.
Click to expand...

I have some bad news for you about the way loan words work
 
P

Perfect Cha0s

Member
ZackieChan said:
Wait, it originated with anime? I thought it was just a word that meant upperclassman or senior at work.
Click to expand...

I mean, yes, it's from actual Japanese - it's not an anime invented word - but its use in english has spread through the "notice me senpai" thing, and the basic context of that is the upperclassman or work senior who basically pays you no mind despite your best efforts.

I'm now disappointed by how much effort I just put into explaining what is basically a meme. ._.
 
O

ohlawd

Member
have you seen my senpai?

no, I haven't seen your senpai.

I miss my senpai so much. where could he be?

!

I have seen my senpai!

YOU! You STOLE my senpai!

As if I would want your senpai

*hacking sounds*

it hurts, someone help
 
Z

ZackieChan

Member
Perfect Cha0s said:
I mean, yes, it's from actual Japanese - it's not an anime invented word - but its use in english has spread through the "notice me senpai" thing, and the basic context of that is the upperclassman or work senior who basically pays you no mind despite your best efforts.

I'm now disappointed by how much effort I just put into explaining what is basically a meme. ._.
Click to expand...

My keikaku has worked.
My gaf-senpais have noticed me
 
J

Jintor

Member
Perfect Cha0s said:
I mean, yes, it's from actual Japanese - it's not an anime invented word - but its use in english has spread through the "notice me senpai" thing, and the basic context of that is the upperclassman or work senior who basically pays you no mind despite your best efforts.

I'm now disappointed by how much effort I just put into explaining what is basically a meme. ._.
Click to expand...

language is a meme so don't worry about it
 
R

riotous

Banned
Eusis said:
This was my first thought.

The second thought was "oh right this is how the English language works", as in breaking into the homes of other languages and pilfering whatever words it likes. It already broke into Japan for tsunami, sushi, and karaoke, now it's back for some more words to make off with.
Click to expand...

Doesn't Japanese have an entire alphabet devoted to non-Japanese words it's borrowing?
 
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