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nya
What does nya mean?
The sound a cat makes in Japanese, adopted as a cute verbal tic — catgirl characters (and playful fans) tack 'nya' onto their sentences.
"The nekomimi maid greeted everyone with a cheerful 'nya!'."
Origin
Japanese onomatopoeic にゃー (nyaa), the feline 'meow'.
Frequently asked questions
What does nya mean?
It's the Japanese equivalent of 'meow', used as a cutesy verbal tic by catgirl characters and playful fans.
How do you use nya?
It gets tacked onto the end of sentences to sound cat-like and cute, e.g. a catgirl greeting people with 'nya!'.
Where does nya come from?
From the Japanese onomatopoeia にゃー (nyaa), the sound a cat makes.
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