Sections
Ningen (人間): what it means in anime
人間
にんげん · ningen · human being; human; person JLPT N3
Ningen means "human" or "human being". Anime uses it constantly because so many stories put humans next to demons, titans, ghouls or gods, and the word draws that line.
Where you hear it 16 of 42 series
Lines from the Japanese subtitles of episodes 1–3 of each show. A translation is shown only when it clearly matches the line; counts are subtitle lines containing the word.
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Tokyo Ghoul · 28 lines in episodes 1–3 · this one from episode 1
僕は人間なんだ！I'm... human!
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Chainsaw Man · 23 lines in episodes 1–3 · this one from episode 2
人間！ 早く何か殺させろ！Human! Hurry up and find me something to kill!
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One-Punch Man · 13 lines in episodes 1–3 · this one from episode 3
自分以外の人間が頭の 悪い動物にしか見えなかったA plan to evolve the human animal...
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Reincarnated as a Slime · 12 lines in episodes 1–3 · this one from episode 1
普通 人間って 草 溶かせなくね？Humans can't usually dissolve plants, can they?
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Demon Slayer · 11 lines in episodes 1–3 · this one from episode 2
なんで鬼と人間が つるんでるんだ！Why the fuck's a demon in cahoots with a human?
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Dr. Stone · 11 lines in episodes 1–3 · this one from episode 2
人間様じゃねえってことだ！In this stone world, the humans aren't at the top of the food chain anymore!
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Jujutsu Kaisen · 10 lines in episodes 1–3 · this one from episode 1
人間の… 指？A human finger?
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Bleach · 10 lines in episodes 1–3 · this one from episode 1
人間が自分で 鬼道を解くだと？What if humans solve the demon path on their own?
Also in: Bleach, Kaguya-sama, Noragami, Assassination Classroom, Attack on Titan, Angel Beats!, Soul Eater, NANA.
Usage and nuance
The everyday word for "person" is 人 (hito). 人間 is more about the species or the human condition: a demon in Demon Slayer sneers 人間ども ("you humans"), and Ken in Tokyo Ghoul asks whether he is still 人間.
It also appears in ordinary talk about character: いい人間 is "a good person" in the sense of a good human being, and 人間らしい means "humane, human-like".
Compared with 人類 (jinrui, humanity as a whole), 人間 is closer to the individual. Attack on Titan uses 人類 for mankind's survival and 人間 when a titan turns out to be a person.
Hear 人間 in Tokyo Ghoul28 lines in episodes 1–3 · tappable subtitles · free, no account