Catchphrases and Verbal Tics

During the Naruto series, some characters use individual catchphrases or verbal tics for different reasons, like reflecting their personality.

Dattebayo, Dattebane and Dattebasa
, and  are catchphrases used by Naruto Uzumaki, his mother Kushina and his son Boruto, respectively.

Naruto's catchphrase is used at the end of most of his sentences as a way of making his speech unique. Naruto inherited this from his mother Kushina, who would instead use the catchphrase when she got excited or angry, something she had hoped her son would not inherit. Naruto's son, Boruto, also inherited a variation of this verbal tic.

Dattebayo and its variants have no literal English translation; however, "Believe It!" was used in the English dub whenever Naruto is making a big statement to keep a similar tone in the English version of the series, and Kushina's was "You know!" in the English dub, used when she was excited or flustered. It is also used to match the lip movements from the original Japanese release. Around the start of the Chūnin Exams, however, "Believe It!" fell out of use.

While Dattebayo is not a proper word in its own right and therefore has no specific meaning that would be easy to directly translate, it does have a broader general meaning that adds a specific undertone to Naruto's lines.


 * When the Japanese copula "-tteba" is added onto the end of a sentence by a speaker, it is done for emphasis of the speaker's point, and is generally understood to have a meaning within the realm of "I told you" or "I'm telling you". This generally gives the sentence a confident or exasperated tone.
 * Since many Japanese sentences end with the standard copula "desu", which has an informal alternative in the form of "da", it would be common to see "-tteba" added onto a sentence ending with "da", hence forming "datteba". However, this is not necessary for the "-tteba" copula to be linguistically correct, hence why "da" is sometimes omitted from the "dattebayo" in Naruto's speech - the "da" in itself is technically not a part of the verbal tic, but is simply a standard way to close a sentence that the "-ttebayo" is then added onto. The sentence does not have to end with "da" for "-ttebayo" to be added onto it.
 * Finally, the "yo" in "dattebayo" is a simple flourish - again added for emphasis. The copula "-yo", much like "-tteba", is frequently added to the ends of sentences in standard Japanese speech, and it signifies the speaker's confidence in what they're saying. Kushina's "-ne" and Boruto's "-sa" serve a similar purpose.

"Dattebayo", as a phrase, is something that could be heard in standard Japanese speech, although rarely, and always in only an informal setting, as it indicates that the speaker has a very high degree of confidence in their own words - a quirk befitting of Naruto.

Usuratonkachi
is a catchphrase used by Sasuke Uchiha about his team-mate Naruto in a derogatory way. Sasuke has used this phrase since the Academy and most of his time on Team 7, but after facing his brother, Sasuke stopped using it, symbolising his detachment from his team. He uses it again years later, after fighting Naruto at the Valley of the End, symbolising his final decision to stop his ways and return to Konohagakure.

In Boruto: Naruto the Movie, Sasuke calls both Naruto and his son, Boruto, usuratonkachi. When Boruto asks what it means, Sasuke says it is "someone who hates to lose".

According to this dictionary page, "Usuratonkachi" literally means "stupid person" or "slow-witted person", and is used in a derogatory way on a person that is perceived as a buffoon. In the English dub, it is usually translated as "you loser".

Shannarō
is catchphrases used by Sakura Haruno and her daughter Sarada Uchiha, something both would shout either when being too angry or excited, such as (in Sakura's case) when being annoyed by Naruto's behaviour.

In Part I, the phrase was often used by.

Shannarō has no literal meaning, but can, depending on the situation, translate into Hell yeah!, Hell no!, or Damn it!. In the English dub, the phrase was replaced by a forceful Cha, which Sakura has a unique way of saying.

Mendokusē
is a catchphrase used by Shikamaru Nara. It is later adopted by his son, Shikadai, and is sometimes even teasingly used by his wife, Temari. Shikamaru evidently learned the term from his father, Shikaku, who would sometimes use it in reference to Shikamaru's mother.

Shikamaru explains his personal history with the term in Shikamaru Shinden. During his youth, he would use it in response to any sort of challenge or responsibility that he was faced with, meant either as a complaint or as an excuse to avoid work. Following the Sasuke Recovery Mission, avoiding responsibility became increasingly impossible for him. Rather than chafe at it, however, Shikamaru discovered that completing difficult tasks brought him personal fulfillment, more so than he ever felt while lazily watching clouds. As a consequence, his use of the term shifted: he would only use it in response to tasks that, though challenging in their own right, he anticipated he would later be glad to have done. He shares all of this with Shikadai, who'd fallen into the same habit of using the term to avoid work. Shikadai afterwards adopts Shikamaru's newer usage of the term.

In proper short-form Japanese, the phrase is, however, Shikamaru has a habit of slurring the word, saying it with an "ē" instead of "ai". This is also the shortest possible form, making "mendokusē" an extremely rude way to say "troublesome". The proper, polite/neutral form is.

Bakayarō! Konoyarō!
is a catchphrase used by Killer B. It is often put after his sentences, especially when referring or talking to others, and expressed, like his normal speech pattern, as a rap.

The catchphrase could be loosely translated into "Fool! That Guy!" in a derogatory way, which however does not necessarily mean an insult, as B uses it for both foes and friends alike. The fact that the phrase is written in katakana instead of kanji or hiragana supports the strong emphasis of the phrase.

Mata Kondo Da
is a catchphrase used by Itachi and later Sasuke Uchiha. Itachi would use this phrase whenever he was unable to spend time with Sasuke and would usually follow it up with a poke to his younger brother's forehead.

Moments before his death, Itachi modified his catchphrase in his final words to Sasuke, saying. Like before, he ended this by poking his brother's forehead before finally passing away.

Likewise, after his battle with Naruto, and just before leaving the village on his journey of redemption, Sasuke begins to use his late brother's catchphrase. When Sakura asks to accompany him on his journey, he refuses her, but pokes her forehead and recites the phrase before leaving.

Geijutsu wa bakuhatsu da
is a catchphrase used by Deidara. He would normally use this phrase just before detonating his explosive clay, simply before an explosion or after an explosion has taken place. This quote is a very blunt statement of what Deidara believes to be true art. Fleeting, amazing and beautiful while also lasting for a moment of greatness.

This catchphrase was also Deidara's final words before his self-destruction in his battle with Sasuke Uchiha.

Other Examples

 * Shino Aburame often begins his sentences with, to provide reasoning to his thinking. His pattern of speech is often-time considered weird and is seen as an integral part of his character, such as when Naruto didn't recognise Shino by his appearance, but by his speech pattern after his long absence from the village.
 * Konohamaru Sarutobi often ends his sentences with a, which could be translated into "hey", "oi" or "yo" and is usually used to get the attention of one's equals or inferiors.
 * Ino often uses Flower Language and makes analogies to different types of flowers and the meanings of them when talking, especially when she was young.
 * Deidara and Zaku Abumi often ended their sentences with, roughly translated as "yeah" or "hm".
 * The Kōkinjō determines the word used the most by the one touched by it, with the Shichiseiken openly showing it. So far, the most used words of four characters are known:
 * Darui — . This, however, was later replaced by.
 * Samui —.
 * Atsui —.
 * Ginkaku —, the name of his brother.
 * According to Atsui, he created a big collection of catchphrases.
 * Madara Uchiha often used the term while referring to battles. In the anime, he also once used the synonym.
 * Kidōmaru often ended his sentences with.
 * Fū often ended her sentences with.
 * Ōnoki often ended his sentences with.
 * The First Raikage ended his sentences with.
 * Hinoko tends to end her sentences with "you know" or talks with "like".
 * Magire uses the term at the end of his sentences.
 * Kankurō often ended his sentences with.
 * Mibuna often ended her sentences with "shi".
 * Nekomata and ninja cats tends to end their sentences with.

Trivia

 * Since chapter 492 and Naruto: Shippūden episode 243, 'Dattebayo" has been translated as "you know" and more loosely as "ya know" when used by Killer B. Kushina's "(Da)ttebane" has been translated in a likewise manner.
 * In the episode 232, Kiba uses Shikamaru's verbal tic "Mendokusē" to talk with him and his other friends.
 * In the Japanese version of Naruto episode 101, when Sakura tries to scare away the Moya Triad, she uses Naruto's "Dattebayo!".
 * After being tricked by Naruto and Killer B, Yamato used B's catchphrase in his anger.
 * It is revealed in Shikamaru Hiden that when Shikamaru is going through the relationship with Temari, even after they get married, Temari often imitates him by saying this catchphrase to make fun of him.
 * In The Day Naruto Became Hokage, Konohamaru had to suppress his own verbal tic and imitate Naruto's at the same time while speaking in his stead. In the anime, Naruto had to suppress his own verbal tic as well while being disguised as Sasuke.
 * In the original Naruto anime, Naruto can be heard saying "Dattebasa" in two occasions; once in episode 3, after Shikamaru questioning Naruto's presence in the room and other in episode 4, during the bell test when he and his Shadow Clones were briefly tricked by Kakashi to fight each other, and can be heard saying "ttebasa" in episode 89 when he was complaining about learning only two steps of the Rasengan.