nani
Nani is Japanese for “what.” Anime fans use it, often as an over-the-top “NANI?!”, to react to something shocking or ridiculous.
What nani means
Wiktionary lists nani as an English slang interjection meaning “what,” used chiefly in anime and manga fandom, with the example “nani the hell?” In Japanese, 何 (nani) is the ordinary word for “what.” In English-speaking fan circles, it’s mostly comic: the more dramatic the reaction, the better.
It’s often written in all caps with extra punctuation, NANI?!, imitating the shocked shouts of anime characters at a big reveal.
Examples
- “The teacher said the test is tomorrow. NANI?!”
- “Nani? You’ve never seen that show?”
- “My cat opened the fridge by herself. Nani.”
Where it came from
It’s borrowed straight from Japanese, picked up by fans watching subtitled anime. It’s strongly associated with a meme built on Fist of the North Star, a 1980s manga and anime whose hero, Kenshiro, has the signature line “You are already dead” (omae wa mou shindeiru). In the meme, someone hears the line and screams “NANI?!” just before the punchline.
Related terms
See more terms like this in our anime slang guide.
Example sentence
He found out the finale was delayed a year and just typed “NANI?!”
Similar words
what, huh
Notes
Spotted a mistake, or heard nani used a different way? Tell us and we'll check it. Read how we write entries.