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"Deredere" (JP) is a term for a character who is lovestruck and does not hide their romantic feelings towards their love interest. They will be very openly affectionate and loving towards their love interest the entire time and will behave in cute ways that make their love interest want to spoil them with affection.
Unlike other dere types, they don't have another side that they hide their feelings behind.
Meaning of the Name
The word "deredere" (デレデレ) is a Japanese onomatopoeia for the "slovenly and spoiled (amae) appearance due to romantic feelings in front of the person you are attracted to". It is used to describe the act of "fawning on your love interest (giving lots of affection and attention towards them to please them and receive their love)", "desiring close contact and affection", or most commonly as "being lovestruck (experiencing intense feelings of romantic love for someone to the point that it is difficult to behave as usual or even think of anything else except the person you love)". The word is used when you say or do something that you don't show to others in front of your lover (恋人) or crush. If someone is described as being "deredere" for someone it means they are visually showing their romantic attraction to them and desire for affection in a cute way.[3][4]
The behavior of someone who is being deredere has been described in official media as: rabu-rabu (ラブラブ), meaning "head-over-heels in love (being completely enamored with another person where you can't get them out of your mind)", kawaii (かわいい) meaning "acting cute, adorable, and loveable (having qualities that attract affection)", ama-ama (甘々), meaning "excessively sweet, affectionate, and heartwarming behavior in a romantic relationship (the tender and loving feelings between two people, such as sharing a warm hug, holding hands, or exchanging sweet words)", and icha-icha (イチャイチャ), meaning "lovey-dovey (how a couple intimately fools around; amorously affectionate behavior between two people in romantic interactions, such as kissing a lot, holding each other tightly, touching each other, or looking at each other lovingly for a long time)".[1][5]
Origin
The origin of the term "deredere" can be traced as far back as 1889, from the Rakugo theater play Sumida's Familiarity (JP) by San'yutei En'yuu III. This comes from the passage: ""I'm in love with you, but ah it's not possible?" he said, acting all deredere." (JP), where it was used to describe the behavior of a man confessing his love.[6]
The word "deredere" itself is an adverb that was derived the verb "dereru", which dates back even further to 1867 from the Kabuki theater play, The Child of Good and Evil (JP).[7]
Alternate Name
The word "deredere" is often written as its verb form "dereru" (デレる) when used in the title of anime or manga series, and describes the act of "being" deredere (i.e., acting lovestruck).[8]
It is also very commonly referred to as simply "dere" (デレ).[2]
Terminology
Although the term "deredere" as a word has been around for a very long time in the Japanese language, the use of "deredere" as a so-called "dere type" is derived from tsundere. The popularity of tsundere caused the meaning of deredere to shift from a simple adverb to a character archetype that described something akin to "a tsundere character without a tsun side". Whereas a tsundere starts off being tsun and later becomes dere, a deredere starts off being dere and later becomes dere, or, in other words they are always dere. This term is used to describe someone who does not hide their liking towards someone, unlike a tsundere who hides their romantic lovestruck deredere feelings behind their tsuntsun side.[9]
Since this is the only "dere type" that doesn't have any additional prefix with the base "deredere" word, it means that they are the perfect definition of being "lovestruck" and do not have another side that they hide their feelings behind.[10][11]
History
The deredere archetype is very popular and has been used in many series. The earliest currently known usage in official media is the 2008 romance light novel "Affectionate Love" Complete Encyclopedia: A Collection of Deredere Girls!! (JP), a collection of romantic short stories about lovers who are very intimate and affectionate with each other, such as kissing a lot, holding each other tightly, or looking at each other lovingly for a long time.[1]
It was later used in the 2018 harem romance light novel series I Opened a Nursery School in Another World: The Strongest Loli Spirits with Paternity Skills Are Deredere (JP) about a guy who was reincarnated into another world and ran a nursery school surrounded by many girl spirits who were all deredere for him.[12]
It was also used in the 2021 harem romance light novel series Only MOB characters can WIN! Is it true that one of you is going to become my deredere wife? (JP) about a guy who dreamt of living a happy marriage with a cute bride who would be very spoiled by him. The series follows his story with three girls who are bride candidates to see which one will become his wife.[13]
A popular series that used it was the 2023 romance manga series The Reason Why My Strict Female Boss Will Deredere to Me When I Go Back to High School: Redoing The High School Life of Two Unrequited Loves (JP) about two coworkers who unknowingly had unrequited love for each other in the past and got a chance to redo their high school life. This time around the female boss was determined to make her love interest fall for her by being very openly affectionate and loving towards him from the start.[14][15]
The 2023 romance light novel A Beautiful Scandinavian Girl Classmate Was So Deredere When She Became My Fiancée That She Became Extremely Sweet (JP) was about a cool Scandinavian girl who became so lovestruck after meeting her fiancée that she became very sweet and wanted to be very spoiled with affection by him.[5]
Characteristics
Traits of a person who is deredere include:[3][16][17][18][19][20]
Fawning Over Their Love Interest
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Usagi Tsukino fawning over Tuxedo Mask from Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon
Someone who is deredere will constantly be doing or saying things to make their love interest feel loved by them:
- Praising even the smallest things: Feeling tempted to treat with excessive generosity or consideration the person you're deredere for. Someone who is deredere will constantly be praising their love interest, including things like telling them they did an amazing job on something or that they look cute.
- Prioritizing their love interest over themself: A person who is deredere to the other person shows that they value the other person over themself by prioritizing the other person over themself, such as giving them the larger piece of a sliced cake or doing things they want to do. It can be said that people who do these kinds of things with an expression that makes their love interest happy are quite deredere.
- Bragging to their friends: People who are deredere do not hide their feelings for the person they like. Not only do they tell their love interest, but they also brag about them to their friends and family. They want to appeal to the feelings of their love interest regardless of what others think.
- Acting in ways that shows the love interest they love them: Frequent expressions of affection are also characteristic of people who are deredere. They will behave in ways where their love interest can feel that they are loved by them.
Wanting To Be Spoiled By Their Love Interest
Tohru Honda acting cute to get Kyo Sohma's affection from Fruits Basket
People who are deredere act very cute, because their feeling of "I love you!" is expressed in the foreground. It's nice to be loved by the people you like, so they will also behave in ways that make their love interest be involuntarily deredere towards them:
- Honestly expressing their feelings: A person with a lot of emotion looks quite attractive, so they will honestly express what they are seeing and feeling. They will confide in their love interest which will cause them to want to be deredere towards them, such as being affectionate with them if they are feeling down.
- Being honest about wanting to be spoiled: Someone who is deredere will be honest about the things they want their love interest to do for them and want them to cutely indulge them. They will be honest about wanting their love interest to spoil them with affection, saying things like "I would be happy if you would _____. Isn't it okay?"
- Pampering their love interest: A person who is deredere will not only ask their love interest to spoil them but will also pamper them with affection as well. They feel it is important for both people's desire to be spoiled with affection to be met. This can cause the love interest to feel loved and accepted and cause them to want to do it back.
- Depending on their love interest: Someone who is deredere will rely on their love interest. If there is something they cannot do or need support with, they will rely on their love interest and then praise them for doing an amazing job to make them feel happy.
- Telling their love interest they're special: They will tell their love interest in words how they feel about them and verbalize their feelings. Even if it may feel embarrassing, they are people who will always tell them their true feelings, such as telling them how much they mean to them or how much they love them.
- Giving surprises: They will plan surprises or gifts because they want to see their love interest's happy face.
Personality
General Behavior
Miyako Shikimori looking at Yuuki Izumi from Miss Shikimori Is Not Just Cute
Deredere differs from the other dere types in that it does not have another personality side that is used to conceal the warm and loving feelings. They are deeply in love and their romantic feelings towards their love interest are completely out in the open and very apparent to anyone who sees them. This does not necessarily mean that a deredere must confess the instant they develop these feelings (although this is very often true), but it is very obvious when they love someone.
Deredere characters are unafraid to show their feelings of affection to their love interest. They are very loving and affectionate towards their love interest the entire time. They will become noticeably happy whenever they are around them and may even start blushing from how much they love them. In some cases during these moments, they may even be visually depicted as having heart eyes. At the same time, if things aren't going the way they want they may start to become sad because of it.
Their love interest will constantly be on their mind and they will always want to being around them. They will do their best to gain the attention of their love interest. They may invite them over to their house or try to spend as much alone time with them as possible. They will do different things to show their affection towards their love interest, such as complimenting them or verbally telling them that they love them. They'll often get physically close to their love interest and flirt with them.
When it comes to verbally confessing their love for them, they are either completely open about it or somewhat hesitant at first about sharing those feelings with them directly. If they're too embarrassed to say the words out loud they will show their love in other ways, such as giving them heart-shaped food on Valentine's Day, to try to make their love interest get the hint. If their love interest doesn't get the hint, they will slowly start getting more and more intimate with them and do things that make it very obvious they are more than just friends.
If they are currently in a relationship then they will perform even more intimate acts such as hugging on them, kissing, snuggling, and other physical acts.
Amae
Rae Taylor being spoiled by Claire François from I'm in Love with the Villainous
Deredere is closely associated with the concept of "amae" (甘え), which means "to depend on", "to want to be spoiled", or "to desire for close contact and affection". It is the state where a character wants their love interest to fawn on them and give them lots of affection. They will act super cute and want their love interest to pamper them with love and affection and to indulge in and take care of their needs. This could include things like leaning towards them and wanting them to cuddle, tilting their head down because they want their love interest to pat their head, opening their mouth to say "ahh" because they want their love interest to feed them, wanting to be comforted after a hard day of having to keep up a strong appearance, and so on. It is the feeling of exposing one's own sweetness and weakness and becoming dependent on another person. It is often used to describe people who seek physical or emotional comfort from others, especially when feeling vulnerable or insecure.[21][22] This is why deredere is described as the appearance of "being amae" towards a lover.[20]
This is also true for other dere types like tsundere or kuudere who may have insecurities and want their love interest to comfort them by cuddling with them or telling them they love them when they are in their deredere period. Another aspect to this is finally letting yourself be dependent on another person, which is often a huge struggle for someone like a kuudere. A kuudere will keep up their cold walls locking nearly everyone out from their vulnerable side, but will become even more amae than most once they finally let another person in and let down their strong walls.[23]
Other Traits
People who are deredere are generally very easy to get along with. Because they are someone who knows how to communicate their feelings, they generally can get along with everyone. They are people who do not have two sides and can treat everyone equally. Maybe it's because they're honest with their emotions and don't have two sides that it's easy for them to be deredere.[3]
Derivatives
Aside from the standard deredere archetype, there is also a concept known colloquially as "dere types". When it comes to a character behaving deredere, it is a very common practice to add some sort of differing personality trait that conceals this more romantic and loving side of them. This involves creating a state that is at first apparently unfavorable or unromantic to a love interest, but then becomes deredere due to the passage of time or the occurrence of some situation.[2]
These dere types describe how different types of characters show their deredere side and how they react differently before/after falling in love and becoming lovestruck.[24]
Similar Japanese Archetypes
- Dere Types
- Deretsun: A term for character who is normally deredere but gradually adopts a more standoffish tsun attitude over time. This is a variation of deredere that occasionally acts more distant from their love interest, such as when they get flustered or jealous.
- Nyandere: A term for a character who expresses their love for their love interest by getting intimate with them in the same way a cat does.
- Western:Kekkondere: A term for a character who wants to get married to their love interest right away.
- Western:Megadere: A term for a character who has a strong adoration for their love interest and will not be afraid to give them large displays of affection and tell them how much they love them.
- Other Types
- Idol: A term for a character that is a popular performer that many people look up to and idolize. They often want to spread love to everyone watching them and may imitate the behavior of a deredere while on stage.
- Moe: A term for characters that are the embodiment of being "cute" and give off feelings of strong affection.
List of Characters
See Deredere/Japanese Characters to see characters from Japanese media.
See Deredere/Non-Japanese Characters to see characters from non-Japanese media.
Gallery
 Saint Cecila from Saint Cecilia and Pastor Lawrence  Anna Yamada from The Dangers in My Heart  Miyako Shikimori from Miss Shikimori Is Not Just Cute  Himari Kino from Sasayaku You ni Koi wo Utau  Anisphia Wynn Palettia from Tensei Oujo to Tensai Reijou no Mahou Kakumei  Fuuki Iincho from Aho Girl |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Affectionate Love" Complete Encyclopedia: A Collection of Deredere Girls. Amazon (2008/12/11).
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 What is Dere. Nico Nico Pedia (2008/05/22).
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 What Kind of a State is "Deredere" in the First Place?. Oggi JP (2023/02/14).
- ↑ What is Deredere. Pixiv Encyclopedia (2023/09/24).
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 A Beautiful Scandinavian Girl Classmate Was So Deredere When She Became My Fiancée That She Became Extremely Sweet. Amazon (10/25/2023).
- ↑ Deredere. Koto Bank.
- ↑ Dereru. Koto Bank.
- ↑ Tokidoki Bosotto Roshiago de Dereru Tonari no Alya-san. Roshidere Official Site (2024/07/03).
- ↑ What is Deredere. Nico Nico Pedia (2009/05/17).
- ↑ Trait: Deredere. Visual Novel Database (2011/03/31).
- ↑ Trait: Deredere Heroine. Visual Novel Database (2009/03/01).
- ↑ I Opened a Nursery School in Another World ~The Strongest Loli Spirits with Paternity Skills Are Deredere~. Amazon (2018/10/25).
- ↑ Only MOB characters can WIN! Is it true that one of you is going to become my deredere wife?. Amazon (2021/05/25).
- ↑ The Reason Why My Strict Female Boss Will Deredere to Me When I Go Back to High School. Square-Enix (2023/01/07).
- ↑ The Reason Why My Strict Female Boss Will Deredere to Me When I Go Back to High School - Volume 1. Amazon (2023/01/07).
- ↑ What Does Deredere Mean? How Dere Are You With Your Boyfriend/Girlfriend & How to Act Dere Well!. SmartLog (2024/05/06).
- ↑ Characteristics of Deredere Women That Make Men Fall in Love. Modelpress (2020/12/28).
- ↑ What Does "Deredere" Mean? How Deredere is Your Boyfriend? Secret Techniques to Make Him Fall Madly in Love With You. Happy Mail (2022/04/28).
- ↑ What's the Psychology Behind a Girlfriend Acting Deredere? The Honest Reasons of 100 Women. Famico (2024/07/02).
- ↑ What is Amaeru. Pixiv Encyclopedia (2015/05/27).
- ↑ Exploring the True Meaning of Kawaii. Keio University.
- ↑ What is Dere. Pixiv Encyclopedia (2021/09/29).
- ↑ What is a Girl's "◯◯dere"?. AppBank (2016/07/06).
| v • eDere Types | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | Standard |
Bakadere ♥ Biridere ♥ Bokodere ♥ Butsudere ♥ Darudere ♥ Deredere ♥ Dorodere ♥ Erodere ♥ Gandere ♥ Goudere ♥ Gundere ♥ Himedere ♥ Hinedere ♥ Kamidere ♥ Kichidere ♥ Kiridere ♥ Kuudere ♥ M Dere ♥ Nyandere ♥ Onidere ♥ Rindere ♥ Roshidere ♥ S Dere ♥ Shindere ♥ Shundere ♥ Teredere ♥ Tsundere ♥ Tsuyodere ♥ Undere ♥ Usodere ♥ Utsudere ♥ Uzadere ♥ Wandere ♥ Yandere ♥ Yoidere ♥ Zondere ♥ | |
| Variations |
Deretsun ♥ Tsun-Aho ♥ Tsun-Ama ♥ Tsunbaka ♥ Tsundora ♥ Tsunneko ♥ Tsun-Pure ♥ Tsunpuri ♥ Tsunshun ♥ Tsuntere ♥ | ||
| Western | Standard |
Bocchandere ♥ Byoukidere ♥ Dandere ♥ Kanedere ♥ Kekkondere ♥ Nemuidere ♥ Oujidere ♥ Smugdere ♥ Teasedere ♥ Thugdere ♥ | |
| Variations |
Kamidere (Western) ♥ Kidere ♥ Mayadere (Western) ♥ Megadere (Western) ♥ Oujodere (Western) ♥ | ||
| Other | |||