Yandere

//ˈjɑːndɛɹeɪ// noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A character, usually a girl, who has an obsessive and possessive side in regards to their crush, ready to use violent (if not murderous) means to maintain an exclusive bond. Japanese

    "And it finally answered the question as to whether Senjougahara is tsundere or yandere."

Example

More examples

"And it finally answered the question as to whether Senjougahara is tsundere or yandere."

Etymology

Borrowed from Japanese ヤンデレ (yandere), a portmanteau of 病んでる (yanderu), contraction of 病んでいる (yande iru), progressive tense of 病む (yamu, “to be sick”), and デレデレ (dere-dere, “in a lovey-dovey, infatuated, or lovestruck manner”, adverb). Developed on the model of tsundere (“being cold and even hostile towards another person before gradually showing a warm and caring side over time”).

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.