とんちんかん

と

ん

ち

ん

か

ん

Freq.FrequencyTop 50,000

Meanings

na-adjective, noun

nonsensical; absurd; incoherent; irrelevant

usually written using kana alone

Describes statements, answers, or behavior that are logically inconsistent, off the mark, or make no sense. Often used in casual conversation.

彼かれの説せつ明めいはとんちんかんで、何なにを言いいたいのかさっぱりわからなかった。
His explanation was nonsensical, and I had no idea what he was trying to say.
質しつ問もんに対たいしてとんちんかんな答こたえが返かえってきた。
I got an irrelevant answer to my question.

Kanji

頓suddenly, immediately, in a hurry
珍rare, curious, strange
漢Sino-, China

Related words

でたらめ
でたらめ emphasizes randomness or falsehood, while とんちんかん focuses on logical inconsistency or irrelevance.
支し離り滅めつ裂れつ
支離滅裂 is a more formal and stronger term for complete incoherence, often used in serious criticism.

Written forms

とんちんかんUsage50%
Usually written in kana; the kanji form 頓珍漢 is ateji and rare.
トンチンカンUsage38%
kana-only spelling
Katakana variant, sometimes used for emphasis or in informal writing.
頓とん珍ちん漢かんUsage13%
ateji (phonetic kanji usage)
Ateji kanji form; rarely used in modern writing.

Etymology

An imitative expression traditionally associated with the mismatched ringing of a blacksmith’s hammers, whose irregular sounds suggested something incoherent or out of step. 頓珍漢 is phonetic ateji.