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I was talking to my language partner and she mentioned ぶさかわ being used in
situations when you want to describe something not pretty but nice. Apparently
the word is relatively new and was first used in a pet magazine.

What is the actual meaning?
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2012-06-17T12:46:53.090
5884
2012-06-17T13:52:51.150
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question
words translation internet-slang
What is the meaning of ぶさかわ?
Probably, it is short for [不]{ぶ}[細]{さい}[工]{く} 'ugly' + [可]{か}[愛]{わい}い
'pretty'.

It may sound contradictory, but the direction of the two properties point to
slightly different angles, and the positive one somehow out wins the negative
property.

Realizing that you mention it was used in a pet magazine, I think it typically
refers to the face of a bulldog or a pug, which sometimes is ugly but
nevertheless cute. It is contrasted with other kinds of dogs that have the
nose sticking out and the chin skinny, which are considered simply
"handsome/beautiful".

A similar one with contradictory flavor is ヘタウマ, which is short for
[下手]{へた}([糞]{くそ}) 'bad at' + [上手]{うま}い 'good at', and means 'drawings or
writings intentionally made to look bad (like a child's scribble) but are
pretty much under control'.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-06-17T13:12:47.297
5885
2012-06-17T13:52:51.150
2012-06-17T13:52:51.150
5884
answer