じいちゃん

Freq.FrequencyTop 20,000

Meanings

familiar languageusually written using kana alone

Familiar, affectionate term for one's own grandfather or an elderly man addressed as such. Often used by children or within the family.

Kanji

爺old man, grampa
祖ancestor, pioneer, founder
父father

Related words

おじいさんN5sense 1
おじいさん is the more polite, standard word for a grandfather or elderly man, while じいちゃん is a childlike, affectionate term used within the family.
じいさんN1sense 2
爺さん is a blunter, less affectionate way to call an old man than the warm, childlike じいちゃん.

Politeness

おじいさんpolite 丁寧語N5sense 1
おじいさん is the polite register form used to address or refer to a grandfather or elderly man, whereas じいちゃん is the casual, affectionate family register.
祖そ父ふhumble 謙譲語N4sense 1
祖父 is the humble, formal term used when mentioning one's own grandfather to outsiders, unlike the intimate, everyday じいちゃん.

Don't confuse with

ばあちゃん sense 1
ばあちゃん means grandma and is easily confused with じいちゃん (grandpa) since the two differ only by the gendered prefix.

Counted with

名めいN2
counter for people (honorific) · first name; given name · famous; great; noted · name; title · noun (grammar)

Word family

おじいちゃん
grandpa; granddad

Written forms

爺じいちゃん
Kanji spelling using 爺 (old man); less common than kana but still seen.
祖父じいちゃん
Kanji spelling using 祖父 (grandfather); rare and somewhat redundant with the ちゃん suffix.
じーちゃん
Search-only kana variant with long vowel mark; not a standard spelling.
じぃちゃん
Search-only kana variant with small ぃ; not a standard spelling.

Etymology

Contraction of じいさん (old man/grandfather) with the affectionate suffix ちゃん. The reading じいちゃん is standard; variants like じーちゃん are informal elongations.