[Kansai-ben] めっちゃ (Metcha)

Japanese

Introduction

Hagi「はぎ」
Hello – it’s Hagi!

Welcome to the Kansai-ben Word of the Day Series!

This series will introduce commonly-used words spoken in the Kansai region. I think you’ll like the word we introduce today! 😉

You can read a brief introduction on the Kansai-ben dialect here.

Word of the day – “めっちゃ” (Metcha)

Today’s Kansai-ben word of the day is “めっちゃ” or Metcha.
In standard Japanese (Hyoujungo), it is replaceable with the word “とても” / Totemo or “すごく” / Sugoku.

“Metcha” has the same definition as “Totemo” or “Sugoku”, and means ‘very’, ‘extremely’, and others.

Conversation Example

So how is “めっちゃ” (Totemo / Sugoku) used? Let’s look at the following conversation.

Hagi「はぎ」
JP : このスカートめっちゃ可愛い！はいてみよ！
Rōmaji : Kono Suka-to Metcha Kawaii! Haite Miyo!
Translation : This skirt is so cute! Let me try it on!
Muku「むく」
JP : スカートめっちゃにあうやん！買うん？
Rōmaji : Suka-to Metcha Niauyan! Kaunn?
Translation : That skirt really suits you! Are you going to buy it?
Hagi「はぎ」
JP : どうしよー値段めっちゃ高いねん。。。
Rōmaji : Doshiyou – Nedan Metcha Takainenn …
Translation : I’m not sure – it’s very expensive…

Haven’t we all faced a situation like this before?

Conversation Example – Explanation

Let’s break down the conversation in this section.

Here is a scene where I was contemplating whether to buy a rather expensive skirt.

*Key Point* – The key to pronouncing the word “めっちゃ” (Metcha), is to separate the word into two syllables. The first syllable (Met-) is pronounced exactly like how you would pronounce the word “Mets” from the “New York Mets”, the baseball team. The second syllable (-cha) is pronounced like the “Cha” from the “Cha Cha dance”.

*The Real Key Point* – Accent the first syllable of “めっちゃ” (Metcha) to to emphasize / exaggerate the ‘extremeness’ of what you’re trying to say!

The conversation given today is pretty straight-forward, but let me give some extra comments!

Sentence 1

Rōmaji : Kono Suka-to Metcha Kawaii! Haite Miyo!
Translation : This skirt is so cute! Let me try it on!

Hagi「はぎ」
➭ When you’re having an informal conversation – you don’t have to use ‘desu’ / ‘masu’ in your conversations! We call this kind of informal dialogue as “ためぐち” (Tameguchi).
Sentence 2

Rōmaji : Suka-to Metcha Niauyan! Kaunn?
Translation : That skirt really suits you! Are you going to buy it?

Hagi「はぎ」
Here’s some extra Kansai-ben for ya!

➭ Sometimes in Hyojungo (Standard Japanese), the phase “~じゃん” (~Jan) is added to the end of a word/sentence. “~やん” (Yan) is the Kansai-ben version of this phrase!
Should we go further into this phrase next? 🙃

Sentence 3

Rōmaji : Doshiyou – Nedan Metcha Takainenn …
Translation : I’m not sure – it’s very expensive…

Hagi「はぎ」
➭ Notice that “めっちゃ” (Metcha) can be used in both a ‘positive’ and ‘negative’ tone.

How / When to use “めっちゃ” (Metca)?

Here are some example sentences that use “めっちゃ” (Metcha).

You may have noticed that “めっちゃ” (Metcha) is used an adverb.

Example 1
  • JP : あの子、走るのめっちゃ速い。
  • Rōmaji : Ano Ko, Hashiruno Metcha Hayai.
  • Translation : That kid runs really fast.
Example 2
  • JP : 北海道のウニ、やっぱりめっちゃ新鮮だね。
  • Rōmaji : Hokkaido No Uni, Yappari Metcha Shinsendane.
  • Translation : The uni in Hokkaido is very fresh after all.
Example 3
  • JP : そのジェットコースターめっちゃ怖くない？！
  • Rōmaji : Sono Jettoko-suta- Metcha Kowakunai?!
  • Translation : Isn’t that rollercoaster really scary?!

Fin

Muku「むく」

JP : スカート買うのはいいけど、服めっちゃ持ってるやん。そんないらんやろ。
Rōmaji : Suka-to Kaunowa Iikédo, Fuku Metcha Mottéruyan. Sonnna Iran Yaro.
Translation : I mean, it’s fine to buy the skirt, but you already have a lot of clothes. You don’t need any more.

Hagi「はぎ」

English : You don’t understand.

That’s all for today! Thanks for reading!

Until then!