other N5 common casual
〜ちゃん — affectionate name suffix 〜ちゃん
〜ちゃん ・ ちゃん
Meaning
- affectionate name suffix — for children, close friends, family members, and pets
Key sentence
花子ちゃん、こっちおいで。
Hanako-chan, come over here.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| A person's name (often a shortened nickname) | Name + ちゃん | ゆうこ → ゆうちゃん |
When: Intimate, casual only. Using ちゃん with a superior, a stranger, or in a business setting sounds childish or over-familiar — use さん or 様 there.
Examples
おばあちゃん、お元気ですか。
Grandma, how are you?
うちの犬はポチちゃんっていうんだ。
Our dog is called Pochi-chan.
Easily confused with
君 Both are familiar suffixes. ちゃん is warm and affectionate, typical for girls, small children, and close friends; 君 is for boys, peers, and juniors and feels more neutral-familiar than cute. さん さん is the neutral-polite default for anyone. ちゃん replaces it only when you're close enough for affection; using ちゃん where さん is expected can sound disrespectful.
See 〜ちゃん in real sentences
Jengo shows 〜ちゃん the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.
Study it in JengoSources Compiled with reference to A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar.