#twstlanguage

He speaks differently from other characters but i cant put my finger on what it is lol

Hello hello, thank you for this question! 🦇

Here is a list of character pronouns! :>

And here is an explanation!

School-Lilia uses “Washi,” which is generally associated with older men in both casual and more formal situations, and often used in fiction as the pronoun of elderly/authoritative figures, like samurai or old men 🦇

More about personal pronouns in Twst here!

Updated ranking of who swears/name-calls/etc. the most in the main story/events/vignettes and the top 5 are:

#1 Leona 👑 #2 Jack #3 Ace #4 Mobs #5 Grim

Characters who have yet to use such words in the game are Trey and Rook.

Note: As what constitutes a bad word can vary by person, culture, dialect, region, etc., a wide range has been included.

Previous ranking here.

Details on what words were counted, what they mean and who says what have been provided here:

Additions:

おや (oya) is an interjection that can mean things like “well!” or “oh my!” in English to express slight surprise, and some characters in Twst repeat it often as a verbal tic.

Jade remains King of Oya, repeating it at least 146 times throughout the game. Other characters who will often say "oya" are: 

・Rook (106 times) 

・Azul (103 times) 

・Malleus (24 times)

・Riddle (20 times)

・Fellow (18 times) 

・Lilia (19 times) 

・Crowley (17 times)

・Idia (9 times) 

 "Oya" is also used by Sam, Trein, ghosts, Pomefiore students, Rollo, Skully, Swing, Marja, Jack Skellington, and unnamed characters.

Oya is more rarely used by Jamil (three times).

When Ortho, Leona and Meleanor use it, it has been in a mocking way.

Silver uses "oya oya" just once after being lectured for three hours by Azul on how to better assert his authority in a possible example of Silver trying to sound more like Azul.

October’s ranking update here:

Hello hello, thank you for this question! 🔸

While looking for examples maybe found by others, came across a very relevant topic on twstsoku, which you might find interesting! ^^

I’m a high schooler prefect, and I am so bothered by how outdated Cater Diamond’s word choices are. He’s supposed to be super in tune with the latest trends, but the words he uses are things like “sagepoyo,” “sha-me,” and “tohoho," basically a lot of really old slang… I get that this is probably based on the stereotypical image of a gyaruo, but I kind of wish he’d at least say stuff like “pien" or something~ Knowing his darker side, it makes me wonder if maybe Cater is forcing himself to talk like that, or if he’s just gotten tired of keeping up with trends. But if it turns out he talks that way because he’s copying his older sisters, that’d be cute (depends on their age gap).

I see. If we say Cay-kun was born in the 2000s in real-world terms, then does his way of speaking feel more like around 2010? If that’s the case then if it’s language his older sisters used if they're about 5–10 years older, which might not feel that strange. Like kind of role models, maybe.

Idia's otaku-speak is pretty outdated too, so regardless of their technological abilities I just fill in the gaps in my head by assuming that the social media scene in the world of Twst is about 15 years behind the prefect’s world (just a rough guess).

It probably depends on each player’s personality and age, but there are probably people who get irritated when they hear youth slang. So maybe they were aiming for a balance where both student prefects and working adult prefects can understand the meaning, and where it doesn’t make people feel excessive dislike toward Cater as a character.

OP here. There are honestly words Cater uses (and Idia’s slang too) that I don’t know, so I end up googling them, and it felt strange, like “he’s supposed to be trendy, so why the inconsistency…?” but now it makes sense. Also, I realized I’m not even part of the main target audience to begin with. No wonder I didn’t know them. For now, I think I’ll just enjoy learning different words and slang. (Sorry if calling some words “old” made anyone feel bad.)

And there we are! ^^

“Sagepoyo,” “sha-me,” and “tohoho" are examples of the kind of outdated slang that contribute to Cater's gyaru vibe! It is also just how Cater speaks overall, which is more difficult to explain 💦 Even when he doesn't use uniquely "gyaru" vocabulary, there are also times you can tell just from his atmosphere, such as from his tone, speech patterns, and social-media-minded, performative friendliness ♪

As a follow up, a cute video of someone meeting Cater for the first time and reacting to his slang! 🔶

Note: Language is complex, this is not official information, just a gathering of observations and thoughts~

It is possible that Kalim has never said "please":

While the word will be added to his dialogue on EN, there are maybe no matching instances in the original game, with one exception: the polite-Kalim (made of darkness) seen in Jamil's dream of Book 7, whom Jamil calls out for its politeness and humility being "beyond farfetched" to believably be Kalim.

Kalim will often say 頼む (tanomu), which is something close to “Do this for me” or “I need you to do this," it can even feel pushy/presumptive depending on context, and Kalim himself has said that he knows he can be pushy: it is maybe a part of his character that is being represented through his speech patterns.

This might not be having the same effect on EN, however, where the word will sometimes be translated as "please," but "please" is not what it means, and it is also not a polite form of the verb.

Examples:

Original Kalim: Come on, Jamil! I want them to know how amazing the Scalding Sands is! EN Kalim: C'mon, Jamil! Pretty please? I want them to learn all about the Scalding Sands!

Original Kalim: It's fine! If you help, Jamil, we'll finish in no time. Hey, come on! Just like this! EN Kalim: Don't worry, Jamil! It'll go way faster with you chipping in. C'mooon, pretty pleeease:

But there are ways in Japanese to denote politeness and humility without having to use a literal word for "please" through polite/formal verb forms and honorifics, which Kalim also does not use.

Kalim's go-to verb form is 「くれ」 described on this language-study site as, "...sounds rude and is only used by a few elder men."

And it is that "rude" verb form that Kalim is using all of the time: as he grew up very wealthy with many servants and is used to having his needs fulfilled immediately, it is possible that his dialogue is being written as Kalim speaking as though he knows he will be obeyed rather than making requests that can be refused, even now that he is surrounded by fellow students instead of servants, because that is all he has ever known.

On EN server Kalim’s dialogue will sometimes be made more polite, with the localization selectively softening identical sentence structures, introducing politeness that doesn’t exist.

Examples:

Original Kalim: Tell everyone so that nobody skips out. EN Kalim: Do me a favor and make sure everyone show's up, okay?

Original Kalim: Come to the party. EN Kalim: I think you should come to the party.

Original Kalim: What's it like under the sea? EN Kalim: What's it like there, if you don't mind me asking?

Original Kalim: I came here to get you to cook for us. EN Kalim: I was hoping you'd cook something for us.

Original Kalim: Yeah. EN Kalim: Yes, sir!

When Kalim is being hypnotized by Jamil his authoritative phrase, "Gather all of Scarabia's students," was translated correctly, but when Kalim uses the same verb form in Firelit Sky it was softened to him asking Jamil "Can you (do this)?," despite being phrased the same way in his original dialogue.

Original Kalim: Jamil, show everyone else the shops. EN Kalim: Jamil, can you show the others around in the meantime?

When Kalim tells Jamil to lead the student to safety in Book 7 it was translated accurately for EN, but identical phrasing in a vignette was changed to, "Would you (do this)?", instead, as though Jamil had the option of refusing, when both times he is speaking with authority in the original line.

Original Kalim: Jamil, make something! EN Kalim: Hey, Jamil. Would you make me something?

The game itself touches on Kalim's unawareness of his own authoritative speech patterns in a vignette where he talks about a time he dressed up in servant's clothes and Vil points out that no one actually fell for his ruse because he changed his appearance, but not how he speaks.

Kalim: Does that mean I'm not supposed to talk like I normally do? Vil: Exactly. Think about the demeanor the staff have when they address you.

Kalim concludes that he should have used "watashi" as a pronoun instead of his usual "ore" in order to trick the servants into thinking he was one of them, to which Vil responds, "I wasn't referring to superficial details like that...," maybe highlighting Kalim’s lack of awareness of how his speech patterns alone are sending out signals of his status and authority.

Hello hello, thank you for this question! ⚔️🍩🦦

Oh noo did I use that somewhere without an explanation of its meaning, I am very sorry if so m(__)m

"Irafuwa" was maybe first introduced in Leona's ceremonial robes vignette! It is the second-year students' way to refer to Silver and Kalim, for how their obliviousness annoys those around them:

On EN it was localized as, "The Facepalm Brigade."

"Ira" comes from "ira-ira," for "irritating," while "fuwa" comes from "fuwa fuwa," for fluffy 🦦⚔️

It also comes up in Silver's dorm vignette, Glorious Masquerade, and more recently during the new Halloween event on JP!

Note: Language is complex, this is not official information, just observations and subjective analysis and "What if maybe...!?"

Unlike Jade and Azul, Riddle is not a “polite-speech (keigo) character,” instead using commanding/impersonal/standard-formal speech without deference, even to those older than himself.

A person on Yahoo! Questions brought up this point in 2021, saying that one of the reasons they dislike Riddle is because of how he speaks to older students, using authoritative phrasing even when he is addressing Leona, an upperclassman and member of royalty.

“The way he speaks to seniors like Leona, using words like ‘yoroshii.” (Especially when Leona is royalty…) He is good at studying, but does he have no common sense??”

(More on Riddle’s intelligence vs. common sense, here ▶︎)

Whereas Jade might have been raised to use polite speech and now applies it to keep up a boundary between himself and the people he wants to observe for his own amusement (more here ▶︎ ), Riddle might be utilizing his word word choice to assert authority and control.

As is common with hierarchy speech Riddle generally does not use polite phrasing with people his age or underclassmen (unlike Jade and Azul), but while he does adopt polite phrasing with upperclassmen it is inconsistent, with the degree of politeness he chooses to use varying by situation.

Riddle will use more casual/emotional phrasing with Trey and Cater, almost as though the strictness of how he expresses himself becomes more gentle when he feels safe/comfortable with whom he is speaking to (in contrast to Jade, who uses polite phrasing even with Floyd and Azul).

Much like Azul, Riddle's inconsistent use of polite speech might be an indication that his politeness is something he consciously adapts rather than being a natural part of how he communicates as it might be with Jade.

To compare the three: 

・Jade’s use of polite phrasing possibly comes the most naturally of all the characters, and he might be using it to keep space between himself and others, to observe those around him like mushrooms. 

・Azul’s use of polite phrasing is more strategic, coming apart when he is not consciously applying it, and possibly something he uses as a tool or weapon to his advantage, or to protect himself.

・Riddle’s use of polite speech is much more inconsistent, being dropped even with upperclassmen, and his word choice sounding more about enforcing his authority.

Riddle is not unaware of the rules of good manners, but he is maybe prioritizing his belief in his own correctness and that subsequent structure over social niceties. His speech is not technically, grammatically incorrect, but it does not have the deference that one would expect from a younger student, and can sound disrespectful or harsh.

Stepping away from politeness, there were also these comments on Riddle’s use of speech on Twstsoku, with commenters making the connection that Riddle’s use of commanding phrases and strict forms of expression are maybe things that he picked up from his mother:

“I really love how, in the little turns of phrase Riddle uses, like ‘You understand, don’t you?’ or ‘That’s not something you should be saying.' You can feel his good upbringing. Is that the right way to put it? I absolutely love those parts.” “I love his way of speaking too, but at the same time it’s kind of painful because you can see the shadow of his toxic mom in it.” “I always thought he just spoke exactly like the Queen of Hearts… but I guess that really is his good upbringing showing through.”

“The duo magic lines ‘There’s no point in thinking about it!’ and ‘There’s no way back now!’ are so insanely cool that I’ve genuinely fallen for him because of them. In class, his Flight lesson line ‘Isn’t this fun!’ and his Alchemy line ‘You’re allowed to applaud, you know?’ are so cute that I can’t help but love them. I just want to praise him until he gets embarrassed and his face turns bright red.” “When he acts childlike and speaks normally, it makes his cuteness stand out even more.”

More on Riddle's speech patterns, here:

Note: There is a lot of theorizing and speculation and things happening below because language is complex, this is not official information, just a gathering of observations and ideas~

Similar to Jade, Azul is also often speaking politely (he is listed as #12 on a ranking of "What Character Comes to Mind When You Think of Keigo?" where Jade was in second place), using far more polite forms of speech than is natural to use with same-age students and underclassmen.

But while the two characters’ speech patterns are similar they are not identical in tone or feeling, with commenters on Twstsoku discussing how Jade’s use of polite speech sounds naturally like something he was raised with, whereas Azul speaks in more businesslike polite speech that sounds like something he is intentionally using like a tool to fulfill an ulterior motive.

Azul will also drop his polite speech patterns when surprised, angry, speaking to the twins, etc. (his entire Overblot monologue is performed in casual speech), and in flashbacks we see he did not use polite speech as a child or middle-school student, unlike Jade.

One commenter offers the theory that Azul possibly learned how useful polite speech could be by watching Jade and consciously chose to start doing so himself as a result, which is maybe why they can sound rather similar to one another in a game where character speech patterns and verbal tics are extremely unique and detailed in how they are personalized to each character.

Comments from Twstsoku:

In Azul’s case his polite-speech feels like it’s something calculated, for things like not showing his true feelings or gaining an advantage in business, so it feels like his true self is different, whereas Jade’s case feels like his base self is completely a polite-speech character. Well, if you asked which type of polite-speech character I like more, I’d answer with a straight face that both have their own good points and are extremely interesting. I think Azul’s is business-like polite language, and Jamil is more wolf-in-sheep’s-clothing polite language. People often say that 2-C are similar, but they’re similar yet not the same… and even so, it feels like they do have something fundamentally alike at their core, which is charming.”

Azul sounds like he uses polite language because he studied behaviors that look appealing in movies and things like that. Azul’s polite language is business-oriented, like a full-fledged merchant, but he’s still 17, so in scenes where he doesn’t need to put on airs I get the impression that his true self comes out. Stuff like “Delicious!” or “Yes!” It’s cute. 

Azul feels like he’s consciously speaking politely, like there’s probably some kind of money-making motive behind it, but with Jade, like other people have said, I thought it was because his mother speaks in a polite way and that he was influenced by that. It might be that Azul learned the usefulness of polite speech through watching Jade.

Isn’t Azul’s tongue click the best? Isn’t it insane? What is that sex appeal… it’s so clear that it’s unbearable, and for someone like me, it hits that moment when a normally well-behaved handsome guy gets ‘bad’… I’m an otaku that’s weak to polite-speech characters breaking their tone. Especially Azul, since he sometimes switches to casual speech with the twins, and I’m also the type where that kind of thing resonates, so I’m grateful there’s a lot of supply.”

I completely understand. I’m also an otaku who’s weak to polite-speech characters breaking their tone, and that tongue click is insane. Personally, I like when he calls the twins ‘you.’ I love the ‘intellectual gangster’ vibe when he suddenly switches from a smiling gentle voice to a glaring, low-tone casual voice.

In summary: While Azul does use polite speech more than most other characters and in unusual situations, such as when speaking to those who are equal to him in age/status and to those who are younger, he can sound like there is an ulterior motive to his choice of words.

Azul's phrasing also seems to come less naturally to him than it does to Jade, with his "polite speech" mask falling when he lets down his guard, either intentionally (such as when he is with the twins) or on accident 📝