Translation guide
The concept of deriving pleasure from one's own pain or humiliation. In Japanese, the most common term is マゾヒズム, often shortened to マゾ. It can refer to the psychological trait or sexual practice.
Expressing the idea of deriving pleasure from pain or humiliation, as a psychological or behavioral trait.
The standard loanword for 'masochism', used in both psychological and everyday contexts.
彼はマゾヒズムの傾向がある。
He has masochistic tendencies.
Common abbreviation of マゾヒズム, used casually. Often paired with サド (sadism).
あの人はちょっとマゾだよね。
That person is a bit of a masochist, aren't they?
A formal, clinical term for masochism as a sexual disorder. Rarely used in everyday speech.
被虐性欲は性的倒錯の一種とされる。
Masochism is considered a type of sexual perversion.
Referring to someone who enjoys pain or humiliation, often in a non-clinical, colloquial sense.
The standard loanword for 'masochist'.
彼は完全なマゾヒストだ。
He's a complete masochist.
Used as a noun or na-adjective to describe a person or their personality. Very common in casual conversation.
私、結構マゾなんだよね。
I'm pretty masochistic, you know.
Literally 'person who receives abuse'. Can mean masochist in a BDSM context, but is less common and more formal.
彼は被虐者としての役割を好む。
He prefers the role of the masochist.
Talking about masochism as a consensual sexual activity or preference.
Refers to masochistic play or activities in a BDSM context. Combines マゾ with プレイ (play).
彼女はマゾプレイが好きだ。
She enjoys masochistic play.
Short for 'masochistic sensation', used in the sex industry to describe services catering to masochistic desires. Not a general term.
M性感のお店で働いている。
I work at an M-sensation shop.
マゾ (masochism) and サド (sadism) are often used together as a pair (マゾサド or サドマゾ). マゾ refers to the receiver of pain/humiliation, while サド refers to the giver. In casual Japanese, people might describe themselves as ドM (extreme masochist) or ドS (extreme sadist).
私はどっちかというとドMです。
I'm more of an extreme masochist, if anything.
While マゾヒズム can be used metaphorically (e.g., enjoying difficult tasks), it often carries a sexual connotation. For non-sexual 'enjoying hardship', consider phrases like 苦労を楽しむ (enjoy hardship) or ストイック (stoic).