Japanese wordplay explained

Japanese wordplay relies on the nuances of the Japanese language and Japanese script for humorous effect, functioning somewhat like a cross between a pun and a spoonerism. Double entendres have a rich history in Japanese entertainment (such as in kakekotoba)^[1] due to the language's large number of homographs (different meanings for a given spelling) and homophones (different meanings for a given pronunciation).

Kakekotoba

See main article: Kakekotoba. or "pivot words" are an early form of Japanese wordplay used in waka poetry, wherein some words represent two homonyms. The presence of multiple meanings within these words allowed poets to impart more meaning into fewer words.

Goroawase

is an especially common form of Japanese wordplay, wherein homophonous words are associated with a given series of letters, numbers or symbols, in order to associate a new meaning with that series. The new words can be used to express a superstition about certain letters or numbers. More commonly, however, goroawase is used as a mnemonic technique, especially in the memorization of numbers such as dates in history, scientific constants and phone numbers.^[2]

Numeric substitution

In Japanese, each digit/number has at least one native Japanese (kun'yomi), Sino-Japanese (on'yomi), and English-origin reading. Furthermore, variants of readings may be produced through abbreviation (i.e. rendering ichi as i), consonant voicing (i.e sa as za; see Dakuten and handakuten), gemination (i.e. roku as rokku; see sokuon), vowel lengthening (i.e. ni as nii; see chōonpu), or the insertion of the nasal mora n (ん). Non-single digit numbers, most commonly ten, are also occasionally used. Goroawase substitutions are well known as mnemonics, notably in the selection of memorable telephone numbers used by companies and the memorization of numbers such as years in the study of history.

Number	Kun'yomi readings	On'yomi readings	Transliterations from English readings
0	maru, ma, wa	rei, re	ō, zero, ze
1	hitotsu, hito, hi	ichi, i	wan
2	futatsu, fu, futa, ha	ni, ji, aru	tsu, tsū, tū
3	mittsu, mi	san, sa, za	su, surī
4	yon, yo, yottsu	shi	fō, fā, ho
5	itsutsu, itsu, i	go, ko, ga, ka	faibu, faivu
6	muttsu, mu	roku, ro, ri, ra, ru,^[3] ryū	shikkusu
7	nana, nanatsu, na	shichi	sebun, sevun
8	yattsu, ya	hachi, ha, ba, pa	eito
9	kokonotsu, ko	kyū, ku, gu	nain
10	tō, to, ta	ju, ji	te, ten

Numeric substitutions may contain multiple types of readings and variations; for example, 0348, read as ^[4] uses abbreviated English readings for zero and three, an on'yomi reading for four, and ends with a kun'yomi reading for eight.

Examples

11 can be read as "wan-wan", which is commonly used in Japan as an onomatopoeia for a dog barking.
16 can be read as "hi-ro", Hiro being a common Japanese given name. 16 is also a common age for anime and manga protagonists (i.e., heroes).
26 can be read as "fu-ro", meaning "bath". Public baths in Japan have reduced entry fees on the 26th day of every month.^[5]
29 can be read as "ni-ku", meaning "meat". Restaurants and grocery stores have special offers on the 29th day of every month.
39 can be read as "san-kyū", referring to "thank you" in English.
44 can be read as "yo-yo" and is thus a common slang term in the international competitive yo-yo community, which has a strong Japanese presence.
56, read as "ko-ro", is used in, an alternate spelling of the verb "korosu" (to kill) used on the internet to avoid wordfilters.
89 can be read as "ha-gu", which refers to "hug" in English. August 9th is National Hug Day in Japan.
109 can be read as "tō-kyū". The 109 department store in Shibuya, Tokyo is often read as "ichi-maru-kyū", but the number 109 was selected as the alternative reading "tō-kyū" is a reference to Tokyu Corporation, the group that owns the building.
230 can be read as "fu-mi-o", the given name of former Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida. He uses this number in his Twitter handle "kishida230".
428 can be read as "shi-bu-ya", referring to the Shibuya area of Tokyo, and "yo-tsu-ba" meaning four-leaf clover.
526 can be read as "ko-ji-ro" in reference to Sasaki Kojiro, a samurai from the Edo period.
634 can be read as "mu-sa-shi". The Tokyo Skytree's height was intentionally set at 634 meters so it would sound like Musashi Province, an old name for the area in which the building stands.^[6]
801 can be read as "ya-o-i" or yaoi, a genre of homoerotic manga typically aimed at women.
893 can be read as "ya-ku-za" or "yakuza".^[7] It is traditionally a bad omen for a student to receive this candidate number for an exam.
1492, the year of Columbus' first voyage to America, can be read as "i-yo-ku-ni" and appended with "ga mieta" to form the phrase "Alright! I can see land!" . Additionally, "i-yo-ku-ni" itself could simply be interpreted as "It's a good country" . The alternative reading "i-shi-ku-ni" is also used to memorize the year, though it is not typically associated with a particular meaning.
4649 can be read as "yo-ro-shi-ku", meaning "best regards".
18782 + 18782 = 37564 can be read as "i-ya-na-ya-tsu + i-ya-na-ya-tsu = mi-na-go-ro-shi" .^[8] ^[9]
3.14159265, the first nine digits of pi, can be read as "san-i-shi-i-ko-ku-ni-mu-kou", meaning "an obstetrician faces towards a foreign country".

Dajare

See main article: Dajare. In Japanese, puns are referred to as . Like puns in English, dajare may be considered . Dajare commonly involve the usage of two homophonous phrases alongside each other in a sentence, though double entendres are used as well.

Example one:

アルミ缶の上にある蜜柑 (arumi kan no ue ni aru mikan)

Translation:

An orange on an aluminum can.

Explanation:

アルミ (arumi) means "aluminum" and 缶 (kan) means "can"; ある (aru) means "to exist" and 蜜柑 (mikan) refers to mandarin varieties popular in Japan.

Example two:

A: 大食いのたけし君も、宇宙ではあまり物を食べられないよ。 (ōgui no takeshi kun mo, uchū dewa amari mono o taberarenaiyo)

B: なぜ? (naze)

A: 宇宙には空気(食う気)がない。 (uchū niwa kūki ga nai)

Translation:

A: In space, even a glutton like Takeshi can't eat anything.

B: Why's that?

A: In space, there is no air.

Explanation:

Kūki (くうき) can mean either "air" (空気) or "appetite" (食う気), thus the last phrase could also be interpreted as "in space, (he has) no appetite".

Ginatayomi

Some dajare rely on for effect, similar to garden-path sentences in English. Many are commonly told by children.

Example one:

「パン作ったことある」(pan tsukutta koto aru; Have you ever made bread before?)

　Can also be interpreted as:

「パンツ食ったことある」(pantsu kutta koto aru; Have you ever eaten underpants before?)