二人称(ににんしょう)

A grammatical category term used in linguistics and language instruction. Composed of 二(に) ("two") + 人称(にんしょう) ("grammatical person"), meaning the form used to refer to the addressee.

Usage

• Japanese tends to avoid explicit second-person pronouns, relying instead on context or using the addressee's name + さん/様(さま)/先生(せんせい).
• The choice of pronoun (君(きみ), お前(まえ), あなた, etc.) carries strong social meaning — about relative status, closeness, and politeness — so using the wrong one can sound rude.
• Even あなた, the textbook "you," can feel distant or confrontational in speech; among close friends, the partner's name is usually preferred.

Common collocations

• 二人称(ににんしょう)代名詞(だいめいし): second-person pronoun
• 二人称(ににんしょう)単数(たんすう)/複数(ふくすう): second-person singular/plural
• 二人称(ににんしょう)視点(してん): second-person point of view (in narration)

Related words

• 一人称(いちにんしょう): first person ("I, we")
• 三人称(さんにんしょう): third person ("he, she, they")
• 人称(にんしょう): grammatical person (the category itself)
• 代名詞(だいめいし): pronoun