dandere

A dandere is an anime character type who is extremely shy and quiet, barely speaking, until they feel safe with someone. Then the sweet side comes out.

What dandere means

Wiktionary defines a dandere as a character archetype who stays silent and doesn’t express their feelings. Danderes aren’t cold, they’re anxious: they stammer, hide behind books, blush and avoid eye contact. When they finally open up to a friend or love interest, they’re warm and caring.

It’s easy to confuse with kuudere. The difference is the reason for the silence. A kuudere is calm and seems not to care; a dandere cares a lot but is too shy to say it.

Examples

• “She only talks to the main character. Total dandere.”
• “Danderes are my favorite, I love watching them come out of their shell.”
• “In real life I’m a dandere at parties until someone mentions my favorite show.”

Where it came from

It’s a Japanese blend. Wiktionary breaks it down as danmari (keeping completely silent) plus deredere (acting lovestruck). Its example quote describes a shy, bookish visual novel character as an archetypical dandere and links the type to Rei Ayanami of Neon Genesis Evangelion.

Related terms

• Kuudere: cool and emotionless outside.
• Tsundere: harsh outside, soft inside.
• Yandere: sweet, then obsessive.
• Moe: affection for a cute character.

See more terms like this in our anime slang guide.