Glossary
A short introduction: Why a glossary?
When I first got into the yaoi fandom I found all these labels on fan fics and had no idea what they meant. One was labeled "lemon," another "lime," "angst," etc... I had no clue what they meant! So, I read the stories and learned through trial and error. This glossary is for those of you who are new to these terms, and for those of you who simply want to expand your knowledge of fanfiction terms.
Why a Japanese-English dictionary?
Some fanfiction writers tend to mix Japanese with English in their fanfics, which can be quite annoying if you don't know Japanese. After reading a couple hundred fics I've noticed that certain Japanese words are used more than others, and those are included in the dictionary.
What is yaoi and shounen-ai?
Yaoi comes from the Japanese phrases "yama nashi, ochi nashi, imi nashi" which means "no point, no climax, no meaning." Yaoi is a reference to some dojinshi artists that focus mainly on sex instead of a plot. The term yaoi originally referred only to dojinshi, but has broadened to refer to the male/male fandom in general. Today, the word yaoi is used to refer to homosexual relationships between men in anime and manga.
Shounen-ai (can be spelled as "shonen-ai" or "shounen-ai"; either is correct) is Japanese for "boy-love." Shounen-ai is exactly what it means; romance between boys. When this phrase pops up in fanfics, anime, or manga you can expect to find a very romantic story with little to no sexual content.
What is yuri and shoujo-ai?
Yuri is basically the same thing as yaoi, except it is focused on women instead of men. The funny thing about Yuri is that no one can seem to pin-point the reason why lesbianism in anime/manga is called Yuri. Some think it was named in honor of a girl named Yuri, which means Lily in Japanese.
Shoujo-ai (can be spelled as "shojo-ai" or "shoujo-ai"; either is correct) is Japanese for "girl-love." Shoujo-ai is exactly what it means; romance between girls. Shoujo-ai is very similiar to shounen-ai in that retrospect. When this phrase appears in fanfics, anime, or manga you can expect to find a very romantic story with little to no sexual content.
Yaoi/Yuri/General fanfiction terms
Angst - dramatic, very sad; usually involves a character death, molestation, self mutilation, drug abuse, depression, or all of the above.
A/U - alternate universe; the characters are taken out of their series and places in a different setting. I.E. Goku (DragonballZ) lives in present day New York.
BDSM - bondage/sado-masochism.
Canon - a set order of events in a series.
Citrus - making out, kissing, groping, oral; pretty much everything short of penetration.
Cross-over - when characters from different series meet; I.E. Duo (Gundam Wing) meets Yoh (Shaman King). Usually this happens for the sole purpose of boinking.
Fem-slash - western version of yuri; homosexual relationship between females.
Fluff - cute interaction between characters.
Lime - making out, kissing, hugging; basically fluffy stuff, nothing really graphic.
Lemon - sex between two or more individuals, willing or not willing; graphic, can be oral, anal, etc.
Mary-sue - a seemingly perfect character; mary-sues generally are a type of self-insertion into a fanfic, and are very annoying.
Non-con - non-consensual sex; Rarely is non-con used to describe rape.
OC - original character.
OOC - out of character; when a particular character does not behave like himself; I.E. Vegita (DBZ) goes around planting flowers for no apparent reason.
PWP - plot? What plot?
Sap - fluff taken to the extreme; sweet enough to give you cavities.
Seme - dominant partner
Shota - sex between an adult and a child or someone not of legal age
Slash - western version of yaoi; homosexual relationship between males.
Squick - really gross pairing(s) or content.
TWT - timeline? What timeline? These stories deal with altered timelines. For example, a story in this genre might take an event that happened in the future and place it in the past, change a character's age, height, opinion of certain things, etc. However, these type of stories might not follow any set order of events at all.
Uke - submissive partner
Waff - warm and fuzzy feelings.
Japanese-English dictionary
Ai - love
Arigato - thank you
Ashiteru - I love you
Baka - stupid person, stupidity, absurdity
Baka (na) - foolish, stupid, absurd, impossible
Bakayaro - fool, jerk
Basaan - old woman, old wife, grandmother
Bijin - beautiful woman
Bishoujo - pretty girl
Bishonen - pretty boy
-chan - suffix; used after a person's name to express intimacy and affection, usually used for a girl's or child's name
Chi - intellect, wisdom; in anime and manga it is usually used to refer to one's spiritual energy
Chibi - small person, kid
Chikusho! - damn it (you, him, her)!
Demo - however, but
Doitashimashite - you're welcome
Dojinshi - self published Japanese comic book
Domo - very much, terribly
Domo arigato - thank you very much
Domo arigato gozaimasu - very polite way of saying "Thank you"
-dono - honorific, very polite; this was used in ancient times when referring to a lord or master
Do shita - what
Do shita no - what happened?
Eekuyo - lets go
Gaki - brat
Gomen - I'm sorry
Gomen-nasai - very polite way of saying "I'm sorry"
Hai - yes
Haiksu - hurry, faster
Hakujin - caucasian
Harusame - spring rain
Henshin - transformation, transmutation
Hentai - pervert, perversion
Iie - no
Kame - tortoise, turtle
Kami - god
Kakko ii - attractive, good-looking
Kanji - Chinese characters used in Japanese writing
Kawaii - cute
Kenshin - devotion
-ko - suffix for a woman's given name
Koi - love
Koi o shiteiru - to be in love
Koibito - lover, boy/girlfriend
Konbanwa - good evening
Konnichiwa - good afternoon
-kun - suffix; usually attached at the end of a boy's name to express affection
Manga - Japanese comic book
Mangaka - manga artist
Matte - wait, stop
Minna-san - everyone
Nando - how many times
Nani - what
Nihon - Japan
Nii-san - older sister
Oba-san - grandmother/father
Ohayo! - good morning!
Oi - hey!
Okaa-san - mother
Onee-san - older brother
On'na - woman
Origami - Japanese paper folding
Otou-san - father
Owari - ending, finale, closing
Owaru - end, finish, be over
Sake - Japanese rice wine
-sama - Mr, Mrs, Ms (very formal)
Samurai - Japanese warrior
-san - Mr, Mrs, Ms (semi-formal)
Sensei - teacher, master, doctor; title used when speaking of or to members of certain professions
Senshi - warrior
Senpai - senior, elder, predecessor
Shimatta! - damn it!
Shii-ne - die
Shikyu - immediately, urgently
Shojo - girl
Shojo-ai - girl love; girl/girl relationship
Shonen - boy
Shonen-ai - boy love; boy/boy relationship
So ka - I see
Sugoi - cool, awesome
Sumimasen - I am sorry, excuse me, thank you
Tomo - friend
Uruwashii - beautiful, charming
Watashi - I
Watashi no - my
Yatta! - we/you/I did it!
Yoji - young child
Zen - good, right, virtue