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"Tsundere" (JP) is a term for a character who has loving deredere feelings for their love interest but is unable to be honest with them so they end up acting distant, standoffish, and stuck-up to conceal them. They can't be honest with the person they like so they will pretend not to be interested in them at first and act distant to hide their embarrassment while also struggling to convey their loving feelings despite their inability to be honest. They have a habit of acting all lovey-dovey when alone with their love interest, but when people are watching they treat them coldly to hide their embarrassment.
However, after becoming closer to their love interest and falling in love to the point that they can no longer deny their feelings, they will start to show a more honest and openly loving deredere side towards them. They will start behaving in cute ways and wanting their love interest to be intimate with them or tell them that they love them even in public, actively seeking to be spoiled by their affection.
Etymology
Meaning of the Term
Mao Amatsuka turning her head away and demonstrating "tsuntsun" from GJ-bu
Kurisu Makise getting spoiled by Rintaro Okabe and demonstrating "deredere" from Steins;Gate: Hiyoku Renri no Darling
Tsundere (ツンデレ) is a combination of the words "tsuntsun" (ツンツン), an onomatopoeia for "turning away (to turn one's back on someone, to ignore someone, or to refuse to accept)" which describes an attitude that is "aloof (distant), cold (standoffish), and stuck-up (high-and-mighty)", and "deredere" (デレデレ), a mimetic word for "being lovestruck" which describes an attitude that is cute (having qualities that attract affection)", overly affectionate (extremely and uncritically fond of someone), and desiring lots of close contact and to be spoiled with affection.[8][9][10][11]
A close approximation to how the onomatopoeia "tsun" is often used might be the English onomatopoeia "hmph", which is a sound that expresses "annoyance, disapproval, or indignation" and is usually followed by the person turning their head away to suggest they're too good for the other person. This can be seen when a tsundere makes their trademark pose of turning their head away from their love interest and goes "hmph" to show they don't like them. When applied to a person, tsuntsun refers to "being cold (intentionally) to someone you have feelings for", "keeping someone at a distance", "being dishonest with your feelings", "turning away in disgust", "giving someone the cold shoulder", "acting pretentious (attempting to impress by affecting greater importance than is actually possessed), or "being hard to handle".[12][13]
To be tsundere is to be dishonest and act distant to attempt to hide one's embarrassment, even though one is secretly in love. They are embarrassed to express affection and unable to be honest.[14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21] It isn't simply about being moody or selfish, it's an intentional behavior towards their love interest that distinguishes between their true feelings and the public image they create as a result of shyness. They switch between the cold, alienating dishonest attitude (tsun) and the clingy lovey-dovey emotionally open attitude (dere).[11][22][23]
Origin
Ayu Daikuhji being teased by Takayuki Narumi from Kimi ga Nozomu Eien
The term "tsundere" was created on the Japanese Internet to describe the character Ayu Daikuhji from the 2001 erotic visual novel Kimi ga Nozomu Eien (JP). The term was first coined on August 29, 2002, when a user on the Japanese forum site Suspicious World made a post referring to Ayu's personality as being "tsuntsunderedere" (ツンツンデレデレ) due to the constant switching between her personality. The term tsuntsunderedere began circulating on the site as a popular term and many people on Suspicious World started using the term to refer to her. Eventually, the term spread to another Japanese forum site 2channel where it was soon after shortened to simply "tsundere" (ツンデレ).[7]
While Ayu appears at first to just be a hot-tempered waitress, she is actually an extremely wealthy ojou-sama who is the daughter of the Daikuhji Conglomerate. As part of a study to learn about the lives of ordinary people and experience society she begins working at a family restaurant called Sky Temple. While working at the restaurant she meets Takayuki Narumi, who began working there part-time, and she soon developed a crush on him. Although she always bickers with Takayuki and makes jokes about him, she actually likes him a lot and quickly blushes when Takayuki teases her. She can also often be seen helping Takayuki and she sometimes says things that help him blow away his worries.
Ayu Daikuhji about to kiss Takayuki Narumi from Kimi ga Nozomu Eien
Later on she runs away from home due to family problems and goes immediately to Takayuki in tears. Ayu then asks Takayuki to let her move in with him and he agrees. From this point onward she began to be more honest with her feelings and adopted a deredere attitude, giving Takayuki a kiss. The two of them then begin to sleep together and Ayu could be seen blushing and being extremely happy.
Alternate Spelling
Although tsundere is almost always written in Japanese with katakana as "ツンデレ" it is occasionally written as ツンでれ with the "dere" written in hiragana.[2][3]
It is also sometimes written as "つんデレ" using hiragana for "tsun" instead, but this is much less common.[4][24]
Localization
While the term is almost always romanized in English as "tsundere", it is also sometimes romanized as "tundere".[5][6] The reason for this is that the Japanese kana "ツ" is written as "tu" when using the traditional Japanese method of romanization, but written as "tsu" when using the American Hepburn method of romanization. In both cases, the pronunciation is still "tsu" which is why it's written as such in English, but in Japanese the "s" sound is simply implied.
When the term is localized into English it is almost always translated as "hot-and-cold", referencing their initial cold behavior followed by their hot and passionate love.
Usage
Originally the term "tsundere" referred exclusively to female characters (and this is largely still true). This can be seen in the Imidas Dictionary entry for the term "tsundere" published by Shueisha, the largest manga and anime publishing company in Japan: "A girl who acts tsuntsun towards a boy she likes in public, but becomes deredere when they are alone." This also established the definition of a tsundere character as being someone who acts cold specifically because they have feelings for someone, as opposed to just being someone who acts cold to anyone or for any other reason. When an anime or manga company decides to create a "tsundere character" this is the formula they follow.[25]
A male tsundere character is referred to as an "oranyan" (オラニャン).[26] This can be seen in its dictionary entry in the same Imidas Dictionary: "This term refers to a man who usually acts strong-willed and manly, but meows and acts amae like a cat when he's alone with his girlfriend. The male version of tsundere."[27] The Weblio dictionary similarly states: "A male version of tsundere, who usually shows a strong-willed attitude (oraora), but becomes amae when he is alone with his lover (nyannyan)".[28] It refers to the fact that even though they usually put up a false front they show their amae side in front of you in private and desire to be spoiled with affection in a way that stimulates your maternal instinct. Which is why oranyan characters are said to be popular with women.[29]
There have since been a few instances of the term "tsundere" being used in official media to refer to a male character, since this term became far more popular than "oranyan" did, but this is not as common.[16][17]
Misuse
In the Western anime community there is a popular idea online that the meaning of "tsundere" has somehow changed over time resulting in the creation of two distinct character archetypes: "classic tsundere" and "modern tsundere".[30][31] It is said that originally the term "tsundere" referred to a gradual and permanent change from "tsun" to "dere" but after becoming popular came to mean someone who quickly switches back and forth between "tsun" and "dere". However, this is not true and there is no such evidence of this phenomenon existing. This belief has even lead to some interesting contradictions such as the character Ayu Daikuuji from Kimi ga Nozomu Eien, the progenitor of the tsundere archetype, being labeled as a "modern tsundere heroine" on the Visual Novel Database despite being the most "classic" tsundere there could possibly be as she created the archetype. This is further contradicted by the Imidas dictionary entry on tsundere which came out in 2006 before the terms rise to mainstream popularity and defined it as a girl who switches back and forth between "tsun" and "dere" depending on whether or not they were in public which caused her to become embarrassed and act "tsun".[25]
Another very common misconception is that tsundere characters are violent towards their love interest, when this is not actually true either.[18] Instead, characters who act violent towards their love interest to hide their feelings and embarrassement fall under the archetype of "tsungire", a term for "a character who is quick to get angry and pushes others away when they try to be affectionate with them".[32] While a tsundere pushes their love interest away by acting standoffish, stuck-up, or ignoring them to hide their feelings, a tsungire pushes them away in a harsh and ruthlessly direct way, even resorting to literally pushing them away, but there is often a misconception that these types of aggressive and violent moments fall under the umbrella of "tsundere".[33]
This is not actually the case and a character who is purely "tsundere" and no other archetype will not act in a violent manner since neither the term "tsun" (standoffish) nor "dere" (lovestruck) encompass that behavior. That behavior actually falls under the term "gire", which refers to "becoming extremely angry and aggressive". However, many of the more extreme tsundere (such as Taiga Aisaka) do end up being "both" types (tsundere and tsungire) so they end up following a development pattern of "tsun → gire → dere". Tsundere characters who are also tsungire might punch the person they like and say they won't go out with them even though they like them, while a tsundere would go "hmph" and make a snarky or stuck-up comment while they walk away.[34] However, because the term "tsungire" is not well known in the Western community these characters are often grouped together under simply "tsundere", even if not technically accurate.
History
Early Inspirations
Although the opinion of who the "original tsundere character" is differs depending on the source, Excite News in Japan claims that the character of Ataru Moroboshi from the 1978 manga Urusei Yatsura (JP) is rumored to be the first tsundere character. Although he clearly has feelings for his love interest Lum, he cannot admit it and treats her very coldly. As the story goes on he can be seen getting worried when she disappears, getting jealous when she's with other guys, and blushing when she gets close to him, showing that he clearly cares deeply for her even if he won't admit it. He even goes out of his way to protect the timeline where him and Lum get married after getting a glimpse into the future.[35]
Another character considered to possibly be the first tsundere by Japanese fans is the character of Akane Tendo from the 1987 manga series Ranma ½ (JP) (from the same author as Urusei Yatsura) who was told by her father to become engaged to her eventual love interest Ranma Saotome. Although as the story goes on she starts to develop feelings for him she struggles to admit them so she hides it by acting cold towards him instead.[36][8]
Meanwhile, American manga critic Jason Thompson cited the character Madoka Ayukawa from the 1984 manga Kimagure Orange☆Road (JP) as being the root of the tsundere archetype.[37]
Widespread Recognition
Although the term "tsundere" had been semi-popular on the internet since 2002, it was not until 2006 that it began to gain widespread popularity as a recognized term in the entertainment industry. It perhaps reached its peak in recognition when it was included as a new term in the 2006 edition of the Imidas (JP) dictionary released by the largest manga publishing company in the world, Shueisha. It was also nominated for the Ryukougo Taisho (Buzzword of the Year) award later that same year.[7]
Tsundere Maid Cafes
Kaho Hinata working as a tsundere maid at a cafe from Blend S
One of the first instance of the entertainment capitalizing on the popularity of tsundere was when a maid cafe known as Nagomi starting to have tsundere events in March 2006, along with the release of several tsundere-themed products.[38][39] Over the years the concept of a tsundere maid cafe continued to grow in popularity with even more being created.[40]
Official Media
Anime companies also soon capitalized on this popularity, with the first known use of the term being used in an anime found in episode 10 of the 2007 series Lucky☆Star (JP) during the "Lucky Channel" segment at the end of the episode. In the segment, the character Kagami Hiiragi is introduced as a "tsundere" by Akira Kogami which prompts a discussion and explanation of the definition of "tsundere" by Minoru Shiraishi. During his discussion he passionately exclaims that the definition of a tsundere is someone who starts tsuntsun and then becomes deredere and therefore Kagami is 'not' a tsundere. After being prompted with the question "then what term is she?" he begins thinking and suggests "deretsun" as a possible term to describe characters who start deredere and then become tsuntsun.[41]
Since then the archetype of tsundere has become extremely popular and has been used in many anime and manga series.[2][5]
Characteristics
Tsundere characters are almost always depicted as being female since the term was originally defined as such with male characters having a different term, but there are still some male examples of the type as well.
Moe Factor
Chizuru Ichinose from Kanojo, Okarishimasu
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Manga artist Ken Akamatsu says that tsundere is a unique case for moe characters, or characters who make the reader feel affection and adoration towards them.[42] In his article, he defines three conditions for moe:
- No suggestive actions or messages.
- The person feeling moe must be stronger.
- The moe feeling must make the current state desirable.
While at first the definition of tsundere might seem to be at odds with moe due to tsundere characters almost always being in a position where they are seen as "stronger" than their love interest, the moe traits come when they start to enter their dere period. A tsundere character's tendency to switch between moods is often an expression of internal turmoil and most people have a natural tendency to feel sorry for those who are insecure, which instills the "protection" feeling of moe toward these characters. The development of a tsundere also acts as a source of wish fulfillment. The idea of a character who seems very cold at first but becomes affectionate and loving when you manage to crack their shell can make someone feel satisfied as if they had a hand in their personality change.[43]
The attractiveness of a tsundere has two sides to its appeal. On one side, they are strong and independent characters who refuse to back down while on the other side, they are awkward and insecure about their relationship, hiding any weakness with aggressive language and actions. Tsundere shows that even the toughest characters have a soft side.[1]
In harem media, the author wants to include as many types of moe characters as possible to widen the scope of their audience. Tsundere girls are among the typical lineup of these characters since the conflicts that arise from their arrogance are good proponents for both comedic and dramatic moments.[44]
Personality
General Behavior
Kyou Fujibayashi with Tomoya Okazaki
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Tsundere characters are those who have an antagonistic and defiant attitude toward a specific person (tsun), but takes a spoiled (amae) and clingy behavior (dere) after a certain trigger. The key point here is that it is "only for a specific person". Tsundere characters always smile at their classmates or friends, however, they can't be honest with the person they are interested in. They're a little embarrassed about their feelings and they take it out on their love interest. They will pretend not to be interested in them at first and try to push them away, even though their liking is obvious.[15]
Tsundere characters are not people who play hard to get. Characters who act like that deliberately choose not to get with their love interest until they know for sure that they love them, whereas a tsundere character is simply in denial. They are not honest with themselves and will hide their already existing feelings to protect their pride. This often plays out in the form of the tsundere character acting defiantly towards the person they are in love with and being overcritical of them to hide their romantic feelings towards them. However, when they eventually fall in love to the point they are unable to deny their feelings, they will start being honest and affectionate with them.
Development
Mifuyuu Aotsuki from Zettai ni Dereteha Ikenai Tundere
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A way to show that a tsundere character has accepted their feelings despite their pride and embarrassment is to have them shift from acting tsuntsun to acting deredere. They may still retain many of their typical tsuntsun traits, such as acting evasive about their newfound relationship with others, but it will be in a more mellow and infrequent way. As they start trying to come to terms with their feelings they will go through a process that changes their personality from "tsun" to "dere".[45]
Their character development has four main steps:
- Tsuntsun (ツンツン) - Their default personality. They will act distant and standoffish towards their love interest, completely denying any feelings they have for them.
- Confused (困惑) - As they start to fall in love they will begin to act kinder towards their love interest but will still try and hide their true intent, possibly even trying to convince themselves that they don't really feel that way.
- Embarrassed (照れ) - Eventually their feelings will become so strong that they start to break through their harsh shell. They will start to worry about their love interest more openly if they don't show up for class or try their best to do something nice for their love interest. They will continue to deny their feelings for their love interest, but it won't be to the same level of harshness as before.
- Deredere (デレデレ) - Once their feelings of love have become too strong to contain their feelings towards their love interest will start to mean more to them than their pride and they will come to accept their feelings. If their love interest says something romantic to them, they will be too overwhelmed by the feeling of being loved by someone who means so much to them to hide their feelings any longer. They will start openly blushing, telling their love interest how much they mean to them or even saying romantic things back, though they will often quickly revert to hiding their feelings once they realize what they were doing since this is still new to them. As time progresses, they will start caring less and less about keeping up the ruse and will just be honest with their feelings all the time.
When their development is first happening a tsundere might temporarily regress to previous steps, but they will always get back on track and eventually become deredere.
Tsun Period
Eriri Spencer Sawamura from Saenai Heroine no Sodatekata
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At first tsundere will refuse to be honest with their love interest. They will refuse to hear what their love interest has to say often saying things like "hmph!" or "tch!" and turning away to hide their feelings, but they will eventually turn back out of love for the other person. This behavior is what is known as their "tsun-ki" (ツン期), or "tsun period".[46]
Tsundere are very prideful, carrying themselves with a stuck-up attitude towards their love interest at most times. They might act like this because they come from a legitimate place of power, such as being a part of a rich family or the student council, but many of them do not have a good reason for their ego aside from simply being unable to be honest with their feelings.
When a tsundere is first starting to develop feelings for their love interest, they will often do things such as:
- Cold Shoulder: They will act very cold towards their love interest, ignoring what they have to say or only talking in short snappy sentences to make them feel unwanted and unloved. This is usually followed by them going "hmph!" and then turning their head away in disgust.
- Self-Denial: They will deny their feelings and tell their love interest they don't like them even when they do. They often make excuses and say things like "It's not like I ___ because I like you!", "Don't get the wrong idea!", or "I only did it because ___" to hide their feelings.[16][17]
- Superiority: They will act superior and stuck-up toward their love interest. They will put down their love interest to make themselves feel like they are above them. This may stem from them wanting to rid themselves of their feelings, believing they shouldn't be in love with someone who is beneath them.
- Taunting: They will hurl insults at their love interest, usually when they become embarrassed, such as calling them a "dummy" or telling them to "shut up" to enunciate their point.
As they become even more fond of their love interest, these tactics will start to be used less often and be replaced by their dere-kake period.
Almost Dere Period
Rin Tohsaka starting to accept her feelings from Fate/stay night
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As they fall more and more in love a tsundere will start wanting to be affectionate and do something nice for their love interest, allowing their deredere to start to peak out. This is a period that is known as "dere-kake" (デレかけ), meaning "almost dere" or "becoming dere".[47]
Even though their deredere is starting to peak out, they are still often too embarrassed or prideful to be outright with their feelings so they will instead try to hide them. They will do things for their love interest, but will insist that they don't still like them and make up cheap excuses to try to save face.[48]
- Defending: They will help their love interest out if they are in a dangerous situation and defend them. Even though it's obvious they did this purely out of a genuine concern for the well-being of their love interest, they will often deny any real involvement such as claiming they "just happened to be passing through".
- Gifts: They will give their love interest a gift, such as chocolate on Valentine's Day or White Day, but will often claim that they only did it because they "felt sorry for them" or "they happened to have extra and didn't want it to go to waste", desperately trying to deny any romantic undertones. In reality, they feel incredibly happy when their love interest says they loved the gift and may even start blushing when they are next in private.
- Helping: They will help if their love interest is struggling with something, such as homework or cooking, but will often try to justify it by saying things like "If you're going to be around me anyways then I might as well help you, so you don't embarrass me". Secretly, they love helping their love interest but would never dare to admit it.
- Nursing: They will get very worried about their love interest when they fall ill or hurt themselves. They will sit by their bedside and help however they can make them recover faster, though they will make cheap attempts to hide their worry, usually by making fun of their love interest for getting hurt or sick in the first place. If their love interest falls asleep while they are helping, they will drop the harsh exterior altogether and express their feelings openly, saying things they couldn't bring themself to say to their love interest's face.
They may even get lost in the moment at times and start fawning over their love interest (dere), but then quickly catch themselves and insult their love interest to act like it never happened (tsun). They are not fully deredere yet, but they are starting to become it.
Dere Period
Claire François after finally accepting her feelings for Rae Taylor from I'm in Love with the Villainess
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Eventually a tsundere character will fall in love to the point where they will completely lose their "tsun" behavior entirely and become honest with their feelings. They will no longer feel a need to hide their love and will become a purely deredere and affectionate person. They will let down their harsher walls and let themselves depend on another person for comfort and intimacy. They will start to want their love interest to be intimate with them or tell them that they love them, actively seeking their affection.[49]
There is often a misconception that a tsundere character is a character who continuously fluctuates between acting "tsun" and "dere", however, this is not actually the case as those characters are simply still in their dere-kake phase where they have not truly come to terms with their feelings yet. Once a tsundere character enters their true deredere phase they do not go back to acting distant. This is what is known as their "dere-ki" (デレ期), or "dere period", and is the final stage in their character development.[50]
Sub-Types
There are several variations of tsundere that have a slightly different formula from the original kind:
Variations
See the main pages for full details.
- Biridere (ビリデレ): A tsundere who shocks their love interest with electricity when being "tsun". This is usually done in a gag comedy manner.
- Gandere (ガンデレ): A tsundere who starts shooting guns at their love interest when being "tsun". This is usually done in a gag comedy manner.
- Gundere (軍デレ): A tsundere who turns into a drill sergeant and berates their love interest for not being good enough when being "tsun".
- Tsun-aho (ツンアホ): A tsundere who tries so ridiculously hard to act "tsun" towards their love interest that they just end up making themselves look like a fool instead.
- Tsun-ama ( ツン甘): A tsundere who acts "tsun" while spoiling and pampering their love interest.
- Tsunbaka ( ツンバカ): A tsundere who is extremely airheaded and forgetful.
- Tsundero ( ツンデロ): A tsundere character who will do erotic with their love interest when being "tsun" but still deny having romantic feelings for them.
- Tsundora (ツンドラ): A tsundere who acts so dry and emotionless when being "tsun" that they make it seem like they are serious, showing a complete rejection of their own feelings.
- Tsunneko (ツンネコ): A tsundere who is a nekomimi and shows their affection in a cat-like way.
- Tsun-pure (ツンピュア): A tsundere who is sweet and pure-hearted even when being "tsun", even if they aren't always honest with themselves about their true feelings.
- Tsunpuri (ツンプリ): A tsundere who is a princess and acts "tsun" in a dignified and ladylike manner.
- Tsunshun (ツンしゅん): A tsundere who acts "tsun" with their love interest and then becomes sad because of their actions caused by it.
- Tsuntere (ツン照れ): A tsundere who becomes embarrassed around their love interest and then acts "tsun" towards them because of it.
Common Templates
Although not being a variation on the formula, there are several common templates or backstories that tsundere characters often fall into.
- Basic: The most stereotypical and cliched type of tsundere is the one that refuses to be honest about their own feelings. They will judge their love interest over everything and verbally attack them at any provocation. They will call their love a dummy for not being able to understand their feelings even though they aren't honest with them in the first place.
- Disciplinarian: A tsundere who has been put in a position of power, such as becoming the student council president or the assistant to their company's boss. They will be extremely strict about enforcing rules. Whenever their love interest does anything even a little bit wrong, they will be quick to punish them for it. This often makes their love interest feel singled out, causing them to develop a dislike of the tsundere, however, behind the scenes they will protect their love interest when it truly matters. If their love interest gets falsely blamed for something they will go out of their way to stand up for them, revealing their honest and loving side.
- Shana Clone: Because of the popularity of the character Shana from the 2002 light novel series Shakugan no Shana (JP) many subsequent tsundere characters were modeled after her. They are designed as high school girls with child-like bodies, long waist-length hair that is either unkempt or tied into pigtails, who wear gothic lolita dresses and thigh-high leggings. They are quite harsh and bossy with a noticeable tsungire temper. If they carry a weapon it will be a katana or another type of sword. They will refer to their love interest without any Japanese honorifics, which is often a sign of superiority and coldness but also might suggest they feel close to their love interest upon initially meeting them.[51]
- Tragic Past: Many tsundere characters act temperamental because of a dark past, which makes it difficult for them to properly express their feelings in an understandable and calm manner. They don't want to get hurt by revealing their vulnerable side so they act harshly, either regretting it terribly afterwards or trying to justify it in their head because of how bad they were treated in the past. As time passes, their hurtful past and romantic feelings will slowly come to the surface after they develop a greater bond and trust with their love interest.
Derivatives
Because of the popularity of tsundere, many other archetypes have spawned as a derivative of it.
Dere Types
- Main article: Dere Type
Tsundere served as the basis and inspiration for future "dere types" that were created as derivatives. The first of these was sunao cool, which later become kuudere. Since then there have been many new dere types created.[20]
Since the tsundere archetype is so recognizable, there also are many parodies of their stereotypical attitude and phrases resulting in characters sometimes "acting tsundere". A character might say something like "it's not like I like you or anything!" as a short gag, but the character will not be tsundere outside of that specific moment. These characters are not actually tsundere, they simply parody it for a joke.
Deretsun
- Main article: Deretsun
"Deretsun" (JP) is a term for a character who is normally openly lovey-dovey and deredere towards their love interest but after time passes or at a certain trigger acts coldly towards them instead. They are honest with their romantic feelings so they usually show their cute and dependent deredere side and generously show affection towards their love interest, but occasionally they will act "tsun" towards them instead. Although they may seem soft and fluffy at first glance, they also have a strong-willed side that is sharp and dependable, and they will not hesitate to scold their love interest firmly when the time comes. This can happen for several different reasons, such as becoming overwhelmed by their love interest and giving them the cold treatment for it, scolding their love interest over being irresponsible, getting jealous, or in some cases it can even be a pretense and they act coldly only when they become flustered or when someone points out their lovey-dovey behavior.
Tsungire
- Main article: Tsungire
Tsundere is often confused for tsungire—characters who are quick to get angry and push others away when they try to be affectionate with them—but the difference is that while a tsundere character pushes people away by acting standoffish or ignoring them, a tsungire character pushes them away in a harsh and ruthlessly direct way.[52]
However, there are also tsundere characters who are mixed with tsungire, and it is very common for the more extreme tsundere characters to also have tsungire moments, resorting to punching their love interest rather than simply looking away and acting stuck-up towards them. These kinds of characters go through a development pattern of tsun (ツン) → gire (ギレ) → dere (デレ).[52]
When taking a look at the following three characters we can see that some characters exhibit only tsundere traits (standoffish to hide feelings), some characters only exhibit tsungire traits (aggressive to hide feelings), and some characters exhibit both tsundere and tsungire traits.
| Only Tsundere | Both Tsundere and Tsungire | Only Tsungire | |
|---|---|---|---|
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Differences From Other Archetypes
Kuudere
While kuudere is a variation of a type created to be the complete opposite of tsundere, it can also be confused with it because of how both types of characters act cold towards their love interest to hide their feelings. The biggest difference is simply how they each go about doing this. A tsundere character is hot-headed and loses control of their feelings so they often verbally lash out to try to justify their reaction, the complete opposite of being "cool". While a tsundere character will act embarrassed and desperately try to make excuses to hide the fact that they secretly want to be close with them, a kuudere character hides their feelings by creating a cool facade and remaining calm so nobody can tell who they have a crush on. Whether they act hot-headed or calmly is the key factor when determining the difference.[21] Another big difference is that tsundere characters typically only act coldly towards their love interest since this is a means to hide their crush on them, while kuudere characters are usually cold to towards everyone since they often want to be left alone and will not hesitate to make blunt sharp-tongued statements to get that point across.
Yandere
The difference between yandere and tsundere is the strength of their feelings towards their love interest and the way they express them. A yandere character has a pathological love and obsession with their love interest and express their feelings excessively without hiding them. On the other hand, a tsundere character has normal love and affections for their love interest, but is unable to express their feelings honestly and instead becomes cold and defiant towards them. Yandere characters can also become violent towards those around them, but tsundere characters rarely do so.[18]
Other Types
Tsundere is similar to himedere since both can be quite arrogant, however, the main difference is a himedere character wants their love interest to pamper them and are a selfish lover. They want their want their love interest to constantly pay attention to them, go on dates when they want, get kisses when they want, and they only act coldly when their love interest doesn't do these things for them. Whereas in contrast a tsundere often acts like they want nothing to do with their love interest because they don't want it to seem like they want their affection. Himedere characters also have a very prim and proper ladylike side when they are spending time with people they consider equals. However, it is a fairly popular combination to have a character that is both tsundere and himedere.
Similar Archetypes
- Otenba Musume: A term for a female tomboy character who is energetic and has a boyish personality. Many female tsundere fall under this.
- Roshidere: A term for a character who is only deredere when they are speaking Russian to hide their true feelings.
- Hajidere: A character who gets embarrassed around their love interest. Step 3 of a tsundere's character development involves going through the tere stage, though it's usually less pronounced than with hajidere.
List of Characters
Gallery
 Julis Alexia von Riessfeld from Gakusen Toshi Asterisk  Kyou Fujibayashi from CLANNAD  Maki Nishikino from Love Live! School idol project  Mai Kawakami from Musaigen no Phantom World  Karane Inda from Kimi no Koto ga Daidaidaidaidaisuki na 100-nin no Kanojo  Taiga Aisaka from Toradora! |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Heroine Charm Survey: Kuudere & Tsundere Heroine. V-Storage (2023/09/13). “The biggest charm of both kuudere and tsundere is the gap moe! The charm that kuudere and tsundere have in common is the cuteness that comes from the gap between their usual personality and when they become dere! The tsundere heroine Karane is usually full of tsun. - She can't be honest and ends up acting tsun without thinking, but the fact that she acts tsun even towards things other than humans is her unique charm. However, she can also be dere when it's time to be dere, and the wide range between tsun and dere adds to the gap moe.”
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Pre-Painted, Finished PVC Figure: Seishiro Tsugumi. Nisekoi (2015/10/01). “Despite her boyish appearance, the "girlish" side she occasionally shows captures the hearts of tsundere fans.”
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Dere Suku. Milk Pai (2010/08/27).
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Itocho - Sukune Inugami. Shogakukan (2016/01/29).
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Endo and Kobayashi Live! The Latest on Tsundere Villainess Lieselotte. Amazon Prime Video (2023/01/05).
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Zettai ni Dereteha Ikenai Tundere. KADOKAWA (2021/01/09).
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 What is Tsundere. Nico Nico Pedia (2008/05/14). “The word "tsundere" originated from "Ayashii World"! On August 29th, 2002, a poster on "Ayashii World @ Provisional" described the personality of the character "Ayu Daikuhji" from the PC game "Kimi ga Nozomu Eien" as "tsuntsunderedere"! From there, Ayu Daikuhji started to be called "tsuntsunderedere" within Ayashii World, and on 2chan, the "tsuntsunderedere" characters from erotic games started to be called "tsundere"!!”
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 What is Tsundere. Pixiv Encyclopedia (2009/11/12). “She's one of those characters who has both tsuntsun and deredere traits! I won't forgive you if you don't remember it properly! When a person who has feelings for someone acts cold and distant to hide their embarrassment, but as time passes and their feelings change, they begin to act honest and spoiled.
It has long been said that "the more you like someone, the more cold you tend to be in public", and behavior and characters that fit the description of tsundere are by no means new. However, from the 60s to the 80s , there were many characters who were idealized Madonnas, such as Minami Asakura from "Touch", and in the early 80s, the "uninvited wife" character was also popular due to the big hits such as " Urusei Yatsura", so characters based on female psychology like this did not appear often. Therefore, we had to wait until the late 80s for famous works depicting heroines who are unable to express their feelings despite their love, but become deredere when the switch is flipped, such as Akane Tendo from "Ranma 1/2" and Yawara!'s Inokuma Yawara!.” - ↑ Meaning of Tsundere. JLearn (2024/05/01). “Normally being cold but at some prompt suddenly becoming lovestruck.”
- ↑ What is Tsun. Pixiv Encyclopedia (2010/04/25). “An onomatopoeia that expresses turning away.”
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Tsundere: Understanding Anime's Obsessions With the Cold/Warm Archetype. ToFuGu (2015/11/24). Archived on 2025/07/26. “Tsun tsun refers to someone who acts cold, blunt, or curt. The onomatopoeia itself is actually the sound of someone sticking their nose up in the air, or turning away in disgust. Ignoring someone is a great way to show you're tsun tsun. In fact, it's the very definition of the word. On the other hand, dere dere describes someone who is affectionate or lovey-dovey. You may have seen dere dere people in a relationship. They’re cuddly and use pet names with each other.”
- ↑ What is Tsuntsun. Pixiv Encyclopedia. “A word used to describe someone who is being blunt and pretentious. Being cold (intentionally to someone you like).”
- ↑ Tsundere Meaning in Japanese. Japan Luggage Express (2023/04/29). Archived on 2025/07/26. “"Tsundere" is a term to describe a girl who initially appears cold, hostile, or aloof towards someone but then gradually begins to show a softer, more caring side as their relationship develops. In Japanese, "tsundere" is written as ツンデレ, which is a combination of two onomatopoeic words: "tsun-tsun" (ツンツン), and "dere-dere" (デレデレ). The term comes from the Japanese onomatopoeic words "tsun tsun" (which means "to be aloof", or "all stuck up") and "dere dere" (which means "lovestruck", or "affectionate" in a goofy way). When a character is described as being "tsundere," it usually means that they have shed their cold, aloof exterior in the beginning and are now acting warm, loving, and caring towards another character, often their love interest. It's a sign that the character has become more comfortable and vulnerable with their feelings, and is now more willing to express them openly.”
- ↑ Haganai: I Don't Have Many Friends Anthology. Comic Alive. “Tsundere is one of the acts of hiding ones embarrassment! It's a bashfulness that has been in Japan since ancient times!”
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 What is a Girl's "◯◯dere"?. AppBank (2016/07/06). Archived on 2025/07/03. “A girl who takes a defiant and rebellious attitude (tsun) towards a certain person, but then becomes clingy and friendly (dere) after a certain trigger. The key point is "only with a certain person." Tsundere girls are always smiling with their classmates, but they can't be honest with the boy they like and act cold towards them.”
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 Romantic Killer (Episode 7, 21:50). Netflix (2022/10/27). “Hijiri Koganei: "It's the money I've earned myself. But don't misunderstand me. *blushes* I didn't do all of this for you." Anzu Hoshino: "He's a complete tsundere now!"”
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 Underground Idol & I (Chapter 3). Manga Time Kirara Forward (2024/06/07). “Natsukawa: "Hey, Call Master. I mean, you were making perfect calls, weren't you?" Kageyama: "I just got annoyed that my song wasn't getting hyped up, that's all!!!" Natsukawa: "You being tsundere...? Isn't that kinda embarrassing?"”
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 What is Yandere? A simple explanation of the differences between Yandere and Tsundere. Kantei: Navigating Love (2025/02/24). Archived on 2025/07/26. “Tsundere refers to a person who cannot be honest with their romantic interest so they become cold and defiant towards them. The word tsundere is a combination of the two words "tsuntsun" (tsun) and "deredere" (dere). Tsundere is mainly used to describe the personality of characters that appear in the world of fiction, such as anime and manga, but there are also people in reality who are close to tsundere. The difference between yandere and tsundere is the strength of their feelings towards their romantic interest and the way they express them. Yandere has a pathological love and obsession with their romantic interest and expresses their feelings excessively without hiding them. On the other hand, tsundere has normal love and affection for their romantic interest, but is unable to express their feelings honestly and instead becomes cold and defiant. Yandere can be violent towards their romantic interest and those around them, but tsundere rarely do so.”
- ↑ Ahodere Slime Girl. March Eel (2009/03/08). Archived on 2025/07/26. “"Tsundere" is a word that means a person who has loving feelings for someone and is unable to be honest with them, so ends up acting standoffish and cold, but struggles to somehow express their feelings despite their inability to be honest.”
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 How did "Kuudere" Stop Being Sunao Cool and Become a Normal Dere?. Hatena (2021/12/26). “It is no exaggeration to say that the greatest invention in the otaku industry in the 2000s was "tsundere". This is because it did not simply give a name to a character attribute, but created a boom in various tsundere-derived moe attributes, so-called "new genres". "New genres" are those that create new moe attributes that did not exist before and turn them into short SS stories. Basically, there were many "○○dere", which was a play on "tsundere". And the original of this "new genre" was, without a doubt, "Sunao Cool". Sunao Cool was not derived from any existing character, but was a moe attribute created from the idea of "tsun → sunao" and "dere → cool" when trying to think of an antonym for "tsundere". In other words, if tsundere is "being embarrassed to express affection and unable to be honest", then being sunao cool is "expressing affection honestly and without embarrassment."”
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 What Does Tsundere Mean?. Yotsuba (2021/02/23). Archived on 2025/07/04. “Tsundere is someone who can't be honest so they lay it on strongly. The characteristic of tsundere is that they treat the person they love coldly in an attempt to hide their embarrassment. Many people are attracted to characters who usually have a cold attitude but sometimes show honest affection. "Kuudere" and "Tsundere" are similar types, right? Many people probably think, "If kuudere and tsundere both can't be honest, then surely they have the same meaning?" But the big difference is whether they adopt a calm or cold attitude. If you think about it this way, it's easy to understand the difference in how to use kuudere and tsundere.”
- ↑ The meaning and usage of "Tsundere" - a comparison of romance terms. Nohito Sagashi (2025). Archived on 2025/11/09. “"Tsundere" is a word used to describe a personality or behavior characterized by a gap in emotions: someone who is usually cold and distant, but who suddenly becomes clingy in certain situations. The key point about "tsundere" is that it doesn't simply mean being moody or selfish; it's a behavior that comes from being able to distinguish between one's true feelings and a public image when interacting with others, as well as a shy side. The word is a combination of the Japanese onomatopoeia "tsuntsun" and "deredere." "Tsuntsun" describes a cold, alienating attitude, while "deredere" describes a clingy, open-minded attitude. For this reason, "tsundere" is used to describe people who express their emotions in extremely variable ways.”
- ↑ List of Character Types and Classifications. Monogatari Movie (2021/06/29). Archived on 2023/06/04. “Tsundere - A person who acts cold towards the person they like when there is an audience watching, but becomes deredere when they are alone.”
- ↑ Tsundere CHANGE!. Suruga-ya (2015/05/01).
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 Tsundere. Imidas Dictionary (2006/02/01). Archived on 2025/07/26. “A girl who acts tsuntsun towards a boy she likes in public, but becomes deredere when they are alone.”
- ↑ What is Tsundere? Characteristics of Men, Women and Love Strategies. Zexy (2019/09/02). Archived on 2023/02/07. “Tsundere is when a person usually has a cold, tsuntsun attitude, but suddenly becomes deredere and amae. Among male tsundere, those who are usually oraora and have an older brother-like personality are also called "Oranyan". Tsundere (Oranyan) Male Psychology: "Tsundere men are men who display both a cold, aggressive attitude (tsun & ora) and an intimate, overflowing attitude of affection (dere & nyan). The reason they do this is because they are embarrassed, scared, and not good at being spoiled or showing affection. Men in particular tend to be bound by norms, such as "being spoiled is unmanly" and "that's not who I am", and in an attempt to control their desire to be spoiled, they tend to adopt a tsundere attitude. If the tsun is too strong, they may be easily hurt and afraid that the other person will not respond to their affection. There are also "deliberately tsundere men" who intentionally act by dividing their characters into "external self" and "true self". This type of man is always dere when they are alone together.
Actions that make tsundere (oranyan) men happy: "To get a tsundere man to open up to you, it's effective to make him trust that 'this person will accept any expression of affection' and 'this person won't hurt me'. Specifically, show your affection honestly. And when he acts dere, tell him that you're very happy as much as you can. If you act tsundere towards a tsundere, it won't work because neither of you can express your affection well. If you get tired of his tsun attitude, it's troublesome to distance yourself, so it's better to tell him clearly and honestly that 'it hurts when you say that'."” - ↑ Oranyan. Imidas Dictionary (2009/02/01). Archived on 2025/07/26. “This term refers to a man who usually acts strong-willed and manly, but meows and acts amae like a cat when he's alone with his girlfriend. The male version of tsundere.”
- ↑ Oranyan. Weblio Dictionary (2024/08/21). “A male version of tsundere, who usually shows a strong-willed attitude (oraora), but becomes amae when he is alone with his lover (nyannyan)”
- ↑ What's the Difference Between "Tsundere" and "Oranyan"?. Yahoo (2008/11/30). Archived on 2025/07/26.
- ↑ Tag: Classic Tsundere Heroine. Visual Novel Database. “One or more of the heroine is a classic Tsundere (as they were defined before the anime "mainstream" assimilated it). Starts tsuntsun towards the protagonist and over the course of the game falls in love with him/turns deredere (lovestruck) . While tsuntsun and deredere might conflict, this phase will be over after a short while and progress into straight deredere. Do not confuse with Modern Tsundere.”
- ↑ Tag: Modern Tsundere Heroine. Visual Novel Database. “One or more of the heroine is a modern tsundere. She has one side that is utterly deredere (lovestruck) towards the protagonist. She has another one that is extremely hostile towards the protagonist. She switches between those two frequently. Expect 2-3 switches within one minute at worst.”
- ↑ Tsungire. Numan. “"Tsungire" refers to a character who is tsuntsun, snaps at others, and tends to get angry. A derivative of "tsundere." It's difficult to find the right balance with a selfish character, but if a character is not just angry, but is angry because someone is being deredere to them, then they can be said to be tsungire. Also, "cats" are sometimes used as an easy-to-understand example of tsungire because they are difficult to approach and always on edge.”
- ↑ The Problem of Violent Tsundere Girls in Anime. CBR (2023/01/13). “The tsundere archetype is highly popular, and Tomo is a true tsundere with her brash, defensive attitude and hidden sweet side as a love-struck maiden. The problem is that Tomo expresses her annoyance and frustration with her fists, and not just in a karate training hall. She is yet another violent tsundere -- an archetype that simply needs to go away. Every anime fan knows the basics of the tsundere archetype, including the typical short temper, confrontational attitude and secretly loving side. That in itself is perfectly fine, but the problem is when tsunderes, usually female ones, express their anger or annoyance with violent acts.”
- ↑ What is Tsungire. Pixiv Encyclopedia (2010/09/16). “It generally refers to a state of refusal where the other person is tsuntsun, angry, and stubborn. It may seem similar to tsundere, but its nature is slightly different.”
- ↑ "Urusei Yatsura" Ataru Moroboshi's "Literary Tsundere" is Irresistible ...!. Excite News (2022/10/13).
- ↑ Why Are Tsundere Anime Girls So Great?. JList (2022).
- ↑ House of 1000 Manga. Anime News Network (2014/09/11).
- ↑ What's Wrong With Rude and Abusive Language in Customer Service? Tsundere Cafe Is Here!?. Livedoor News (2006/03/22). “What is tsundere? Simply put, it is a character who usually acts tsuntsun and speaks in a cold and rude manner, but when you are alone with them they become clingy and deredere. They are the polar opposite of maids who always serve you in a sweet voice, calling you "master."”
- ↑ When The Girls Are Mean, The Customers Are Happy. Kotaku (2011/04/22). “Enter the tsundere cafe, where folks pay money to be treated like dirt. "Tsundere" characters are cold, even mean at first, but gradually become clingy.”
- ↑ The 4 Best Tsundere Maid Cafes in Japan. Anime Impulse (2019/02/28). “Tsundere cafés are a sub-genre of maid cafés where customers go to be treated like absolute dirt. The maids do their best to show you that you are completely annoying them just by being there, and they do not in any way enjoy serving you.”
- ↑ Lucky Channel Ep 10 - Tsundere. Lucky☆Star (2007/06/10).
- ↑ The World and Mind of the Tsundere: Moe and the Gain-loss Effect. Animents (2014/09/21). “The important point is that moe (and the tsundere) is not associated with sexual desire; it is more related to a natural feeling of "protection". Thus, it is my hypothesis that the tsundere gets moe points because its behavior shows signs of emotional insecurity or instability. The tsundere's tendency to switch between moods is often an expression of internal turmoil, and most people have a natural tendency to feel pity for those who are insecure.”
- ↑ Why Do Boys Drool Over Tsundere Girls?. Crunchyroll (2012/03/04). “This is due to the gain-loss effect. That feeling of getting more than the baseline behavior, that you've somehow advanced the relationship, is a huge psychological plus sign.”
- ↑ Tsundere is Popular With Both Men and Women! Features and Charm That You Will Be Addicted To. Wedding Park Magazine (2016/11/30). “It seems that this tsundere is now attracting both men and women of the opposite sex! Contrary to their usual cold attitude, there are many people who are captivated by the gap between their usual cold attitude and the dere they show at unexpected moments.”
- ↑ Tsun → Confused → Embarrassed → Dere. Nico Nico Pedia (2009/04/18). “Tsundere personalities can be broadly divided into four types. At first they're tsuntsun, then a little confused, then they start to get embarrassed, and finally they become deredere.”
- ↑ The Tsundere Princess Who Has Passed Her Tsun Period Turns Red Today. Dengeki Online (2020/05/13). Archived on 2025/10/25.
- ↑ Dere-kake. Japanese Slang Dictionary (2005/08/26). “Dere-kake is an abbreviation of "almost becoming deredere" and "almost entering a dere state," and refers to the moment when a tsundere character is almost becoming deredere before completely transforming into dere.”
- ↑ What is Tsundere? Characteristics of Men, Women and Love Strategies. Zexy (2019/09/02). Archived on 2023/02/07.
- ↑ What is Dere. Pixiv Encyclopedia (2021/09/29).
- ↑ What is Dereki. Pixiv Encyclopedia (2011/04/06).
- ↑ Shana Clone. All The Tropes (2022/07/11).
- ↑ 52.0 52.1 What is Tsungire. Pixiv Encyclopedia (2010/09/16). “It generally refers to a state of refusal where the other person is tsuntsun, angry, and stubborn. It may seem similar to tsundere, but its nature is slightly different. There are also some that are mixed with tsundere and others that are close to it. It's not just someone who gets angry, but someone who gets angry because someone is trying to be affectionate with them. If you get mad because someone is being deredere to you, you can say you're tsungire. Basically, it is based on the fact that the person is always strong-willed or stubborn and rejects others. In short, "tsungire" is... If we were to name an easy-to-understand real-life model, the moody "cat" that is difficult to approach, threatening, rejecting, or cat-punching when its owner comes near it would be the most representative example of a model that is most likely to be sympathetic and convincing to all people.”