Tatakae (戦え) is a Japanese imperative meaning "Fight!" It is the repeated rallying cry of Eren Yeager across Attack on Titan, and it has become one of the series' most-quoted lines.
The word is the imperative (command) form of the verb tatakau (戦う, "to fight"). As an imperative, it is a direct order. Depending on context, it can also carry shades of "Keep fighting!" or "Fight on!" — though "Fight!" is the most common subtitle.
Eren typically delivers the line at moments of internalized resolve or as a charge against overwhelming odds. The line is sometimes paired with the doubling "Tatakae! Tatakae!" — repeated for emphasis when the situation is dire.
Approximately: tah-tah-KAH-eh.
Four syllables: ta-ta-ka-e. English speakers often emphasize the third syllable, though Japanese pitch accent differs from English stress, so this is an approximation. The final e is a short vowel — closer to the "e" in "pet" than the long "ay" sound in English.
Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin, 進撃の巨人) is a manga by Hajime Isayama, serialized from 2009 to 2021. The anime adaptation began in 2013 and concluded in 2023 across four seasons.
Eren Yeager is the series' protagonist, driven by the destruction of his hometown and the deaths of those around him. "Tatakae" appears across the series as his internal mantra and his command to others — a single word that condenses his entire arc into one demand. It surfaces at his most desperate moments and at his most transformative.
Like shinzou wo sasageyo ("dedicate your hearts") — the Survey Corps' iconic call-and-response — "tatakae" spread well beyond Attack on Titan's direct audience. It is widely quoted in r/anime threads and on anime-adjacent Twitter as shorthand for unrelenting determination, and the moments where Eren delivers the line are among the most-discussed scenes in the entire series.
This phrase appears in Mixed Canon · Battle Cries on PlotLuck Anime.
Play the round →