otaku; geek; nerd; enthusiast
Refers to a person with an obsessive interest in a particular hobby, especially anime, manga, video games, or computers. Can be used as a standalone noun or as a suffix (e.g., アニメオタク). Derived from the polite second-person pronoun お宅, originally used among enthusiasts.
See also: お宅
He became an anime otaku in high school.
彼はアニメオタクで、毎週新しい作品をチェックしている。
He's an anime otaku and checks out new shows every week.
I wish people wouldn't make fun of otaku hobbies.
Everyone calls him a game otaku.
オタク describes an enthusiastic hobbyist and can be neutral or even affectionate, whereas 厨 is sharply derogatory, mocking someone's obsession as immature or annoying.
オタク specifically evokes a socially awkward geek fixated on anime, manga, or games, whereas 狂 is a general suffix for fanatical enthusiasm about any topic.
オタク usually labels a nerd or fan tied to specific subculture stereotypes, whereas マニアック more broadly describes specialized, enthusiast-level content or interest without that social baggage.
オタク emphasizes obsessive fandom and specialized knowledge (often anime/games), while ジャンキー (sense 2) can attach to almost any activity and stresses compulsive need.
お宅 is the original polite word for 'you' or 'your house', while オタク (derived from it) means a geek or obsessive hobbyist; despite the identical sound, the meanings are unrelated in modern use.
Used when referring to the person(s) themselves, but this noun is usually treated as an abstract label rather than something naturally counted.
Standard katakana spelling; the most common written form.
Hiragana spelling; less common but still used.
Irregular kana usage; sometimes used for stylistic or subcultural effect.
Derived from the polite second-person pronoun お宅 (otaku), which was used among enthusiasts in the 1980s to address each other. The term came to refer to the enthusiasts themselves, especially those with obsessive interests in anime, manga, and technology.