Makoto+ Members, click here to view another manga breakdown and download all the sound files and a PDF just for this lesson. Practice makes perfect!
The following panel is from 江戸前エルフ, a manga that tells the story of an Elf summoned from an 異世界 (isekai—another world) by the one and only Tokugawa Ieyasu.
江戸前エルフ
Otaku Elf
異世界
isekai—another world
Thanks to her Elvish longevity, she still resides in present-day Tokyo, making her home in a particular shrine. This manga is full of fun Edo period trivia which makes it fun. Of course, what's really fun is she's a 引きこもりオタク (a shut-in otaku) who prefers the comfort of her room over the outside world.
引きこもりオタク
a shut-in otaku
In this scene, we're introduced to another elf who, unlike our shut-in otaku protagonist, she is very outward but grapples with a gambling addiction. She squandered most of her travel money on lottery tickets, but never fear. She has devised a scheme to rapidly recoup the cash she lost.
Use the vocabulary list below to try reading through it.
もうすぐ東京競馬場でドでかいレースがあるんですの!!
残ったこのカネ100倍にしてやりましてよ!!!
Vocabulary
Were you able to follow? Use the above vocabulary to try your hand at translating and then see our translation below.
Translation
About ドでかい
ドでかい
humongous
You may know that "でかい" is a slang term that means "huge." Although it originally carried a somewhat crude slangy connotation, it has since become more accepted in standard Japanese.
But do you know what the ド in this word means?
So, What is ド?!
The prefix "ド" in "ドでかい" is commonly used in colloquial Japanese. It has two primary functions:
- Emphasis: It intensifies the meaning of the adjective it precedes
- Derision: It often adds a negative nuance of making fun of someone or something
Origin
It seems no one knows where the ド came from but it has been in use since the Edo period. That means it’s as old as the elves in the manga.
Two possible origins are:
- It may be from 「度」 as in 程度 (degree or amount) since 「度」 can be pronounced ド.
- Or it could have come from a shortening of 「どう」 (how).
At any rate, it is often written in katakana, but can also be written in hiragana.
Returning to ドでかい, it isn't just "huge" but the ド makes it "massive," "gigantic," or "gigantically huge".
In other words, ド gives it an added emphasis that goes beyond the base adjective.
But not just that. In addition to emphasizing, it often carries a bit of negativity, as if someone is making fun of someone. Often, but not always.
Here are a few words that commonly are used with ド. Notice how most of these could easily be used for a negative putdown:
Common ド words
ド田舎
very rural; deep in the countryside
ド根性
extreme perseverance; guts
ド真ん中
dead center; right in the middle
ド迫力
overwhelming force; powerful presence
ド肝(を抜く)
to be utterly astonished; to scare the living daylights out of (someone)
ド演歌
extremely enka; very much in the style of traditional Japanese ballads
ド近眼
extremely nearsighted
ドあほ
total idiot; complete fool
ド素人
complete amateur; total novice
どけち
extreme miser; tightwad
ど下手
extremely poor at; terribly unskilled
ドスケベ
extremely lewd; highly perverted
ドS
extreme sadist
ドM
extreme masochist
ドブス
extremely ugly (woman)
ド貧民
extremely poor people; the destitute
ド貧乏
dirt poor; extremely impoverished
ドえらい
extremely great; significant
ドぎつい
extremely gaudy; loud
ドでかい
huge; enormous
ドあつかましい
extremely cheeky; brazen
ド派手
very flashy; gaudy
ドストライク
right up one's alley; hitting right on the mark
As you can see, only a handful of these words have a positive connotation. ド was originally and is primarily used negatively.
Now, go out into the world (or at least the world-wide-web) and see if you can see or hear examples of ド!
Want more? If you are a Makoto+ member, click here for another longer manga breakdown illustrating the usage of ド.
Makoto+ Members, click here to view another manga breakdown and download all the sound files and a PDF just for this lesson. Practice makes perfect!