How to Say ‘Free! Free! An octopus for free!’ in Japanese
タ〜ダ タ〜ダ タコがタダ〜♪
ta da ta da tako ga tada
[tah dah tah dah tah-koh gah tah-dah]
💬 Usage Tip: [タコ] means “octopus.” The repeated [タダ] and musical note [♪] make it sound like a silly little jingle. Repetition in Japanese can feel playful—or creepy, like here.
🇯🇵 In Japan: [タコ] is being used for Hachi, who is an octopus fish-man. Reducing a person to an animal label is part of the scene’s cruelty.
Phrase Breakdown
タ〜ダ
ta da
Words in this phrase
タ
ta
[tah]
ta
Repeated chant syllable for rhythmic effect.
もう一度「タ」と言ってみた。
He tried saying “ta” once more.
ダ
da
[dah]
da
Repeated chant syllable, helping create the mocking rhythm.
皆で「ダ」を合わせて歌った。
Everyone sang the “da” together.
タ
ta
[tah]
ta
Repeated chant syllable for rhythmic effect.
もう一度「タ」と言ってみた。
He tried saying “ta” once more.
ダ
da
[dah]
da
Repeated chant syllable, helping create the mocking rhythm.
皆で「ダ」を合わせて歌った。
Everyone sang the “da” together.
タコが
tako ga
Words in this phrase
タコ
tako
[tah-koh]
octopus
タコ means octopus; in this scene it mockingly refers to Hachi, who is octopus-like.
海で大きなタコを見た。
I saw a big octopus in the sea.
が
ga
[gah]
subject marker
Particle marking タコ as the subject of the sentence.
タコがゆっくり動いた。
The octopus moved slowly.
タダ
tada
[tah-dah]
free / no charge
タダ means free of charge; here used cruelly to mean someone can be taken for free.
この品物は今日はタダです。
This item is free today.
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