宅女

Chinese

		residence	female; woman; daughter
trad. (宅女)		宅	女
simp. #(宅女)		宅	女

Etymology

宅 (zhái), from Japanese お宅 (otaku) + 女 (nǚ, “woman”).

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): zháinǚ

  (Zhuyin): ㄓㄞˊ ㄋㄩˇ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): zaak⁶ neoi^5-2

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: zháinǚ
    • Zhuyin: ㄓㄞˊ ㄋㄩˇ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: jháinyǔ
    • Wade–Giles: chai²-nü³
    • Yale: jái-nyǔ
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: jairneu
    • Palladius: чжайнюй (čžajnjuj)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ʈ͡ʂaɪ̯³⁵ ny²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: zaak⁶ neoi^5-2
    • Yale: jaahk néui
    • Cantonese Pinyin: dzaak⁹ noey^5-2
    • Guangdong Romanization: zag⁶ nêu^5-2
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡saːk̚² nɵy̯¹³⁻³⁵/

Noun

宅女

1. (neologism, slang) (female) nerd; homebody

Usage notes

• The original intended meaning reflected the derogatory nature of the original Japanese word. However, many women have begun to use 宅女 in a self-deprecating or slightly humorous way when referring to themselves.

Related terms

• 宅男 (zháinán, “a (male) nerd or homebody”)
• 御宅族 (yùzháizú, “otaku”)