タンス貯ちょ金きん

also: たんすちょきん

タ

ン

ス

ちょ

き

ん

Meanings

noun

mattress money; cash kept at home

Refers to money saved privately at home, often in a chest of drawers (タンス), rather than deposited in a bank. The term is a play on タンス預金 (tansu yokin), which has the same meaning.

Kanji

貯savings, store, lay in
金gold
箪bamboo rice basket
笥lunch box, clothes chest

Related words

タンス預よ金きん
Synonymous; タンス貯金 is a humorous variant replacing 預金 (deposit) with 貯金 (savings), emphasizing that the money is not in a bank.

Written forms

タンス貯ちょ金きん
Most common spelling; uses katakana for タンス (chest of drawers) and kanji for 貯金 (savings).
たんす貯ちょ金きん
Hiragana variant of タンス; less common but still seen.
箪たん笥す貯ちょ金きん
ateji (phonetic kanji usage)
Ateji spelling using 箪笥 for たんす; rarely used and may not be recognized by many readers.
たんすちょきん

Etymology

A wordplay on タンス預金 (tansu yokin, 'mattress money'), substituting 貯金 (savings) for 預金 (deposit). The term humorously highlights that the money is saved at home rather than deposited in a bank.