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マジレス majiresu
Answering a joke completely seriously.
What does majiresu mean?
マジ plus レス: the sincere, factual reply that lands on a post that was obviously kidding. Sometimes a confession, sometimes a gentle accusation, occasionally a deliberate move.
Example
冗談だったのに、ついマジレスしちゃった。
It was a joke and I went and answered it seriously.
Vibe
Who you can say this to, and how it lands.
Friends only Casual. Natural with friends, out of place at work or with strangers.
The story behind majiresu
レス is the older internet word for a reply, from response, and マジ is the everyday word for serious, so the compound is exactly what it says. It grew up on the big message boards of the 2000s, where a thread's tone was fragile and a literal answer could flatten a whole running joke.
Two idioms survive from that era. マジレスすると is a warning label attached to the front of a sincere comment, roughly serious answer incoming. マジレス乙 is the reply it gets, thanking you sarcastically for your effort. The word is not really an insult; it is a note about register, and the person who did it usually admits it first.
Get majiresu in your pocket
マジレス is one of 308 words in YABAI, a Japanese culture snack for Android. Every word comes with its meaning, an example sentence, a vibe check and a story like the one above — in 13 languages, read aloud by your device. Paid app: no ads, no sign-up, no subscription.
