二に枚まい目め

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Common wordFreq.FrequencyTop 50,000

Meanings

handsome man; good-looking guy

Refers to a man with refined, handsome features, often with a gentle or romantic image. Originates from the Kabuki tradition where the second-ranked actor played the romantic lead.

彼かれはクラスの二に枚まい目めで、女じょ子しに人にん気きがある。
He's the handsome guy in the class and popular with the girls.
あの俳はい優ゆうは二に枚まい目めとして売うり出だした。
That actor started his career as a handsome leading man.

noun

actor in a love scene; romantic lead

Historical Kabuki term for the actor who played the handsome, romantic male lead. In modern usage, it can still refer to an actor typecast in such roles.

歌か舞ぶ伎きでは、二に枚まい目めは色いろ男おとこを演えんじる。
In Kabuki, the nimaime plays the handsome lover.

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Usage patterns

〈人ひと〉は二に枚まい目めだsomeone is a handsome man
彼かれはクラスで一いち番ばんの二に枚まい目めだと言いわれている。
He's said to be the most handsome guy in the class.
二に枚まい目めを演えんじるto play the role of the romantic lead
その俳はい優ゆうはデビュー作さくで二に枚まい目めを演えんじた。
That actor played the romantic lead in his debut film.
二に枚まい目め気き取どりacting like a handsome heartthrob
彼かれは二に枚まい目め気き取どりで女じょ性せいに話はなしかけていた。
He was talking to women, acting like some kind of ladies' man.

Kanji

二two, two radical (no. 7)
枚sheet of..., counter for flat thin objects or sheets
目eye, class, look

Related words

色いろ男おとこ sense 1
色男 stresses seductive, playboy-like charm, whereas 二枚目 emphasizes a refined, gentle handsomeness without that womanizing nuance.
イケメン sense 1
イケメン is a casual, modern slang word for a handsome man, while 二枚目 carries an older, more literary or theatrical flavor.
ハンサムN4sense 1
ハンサム is a borrowed adjective describing handsomeness in general, while 二枚目 is a noun tied to a specific romantic-lead image rooted in Kabuki tradition.
男おとこ前まえN1
二枚目 describes a refined, gentle-looking handsome man (originally a kabuki role type), while 男前 can carry a rougher, more rugged nuance.
美び少しょう年ねん
二枚目 is a theatrical term for a handsome leading man (often adult), while 美少年 focuses on youthful, boyish beauty.

Opposites

三さん枚まい目め sense 1
二枚目 is the handsome romantic-lead type, while 三枚目 is the comic, funny-man type, mirroring their original Kabuki actor rankings.

Don't confuse with

二に枚まい目め半はん sense 1
二枚目半 describes a man who is handsome but also has a comic or endearing side, unlike plain 二枚目, which is purely the serious, romantic-lead type.

Word family

二に枚まい目め半はん
comedian who plays a lover's part; man who is both handsome and fun

Built from

二に枚まい+目め

Etymology

From the Kabuki ranking system where the second program (二枚目) featured the handsome male lead, hence the term came to mean a good-looking man or romantic actor.