In anime and manga, especially shounen-ai, yaoi and hentai, seme (攻め) is a general term for a partner in a relationship who is or is intended to be predominantly butch, a top, and/or a dominant. The equivalent for bottom is uke. Some fans dislike the term as portraying a sexist notion of relationships - its conflation of gender role with sex preferences and the notion that a relationship always contains one uke and one seme - and its prevalence in some rape fantasy doujinshi. Some series, such as Man's Best Friend and FAKE invert the visual concept or abandon it. The classic guidelines establish seme by appearance (taller than the uke, broody, more mature, mostly dark-haired, no cute faces, non-effeminate, cool attitude, mysterious) in relation to the 'sub' uke often regardless of the characters' personality. Recently, most characters (especially in American fandom) are established as seme based strictly on personality, which can conflict with the original visual concept. Some artists are known to physically alter the appearance of characters to fit the stereotyped look. Similarities appear in yuri fandom, and the term is generally used to refer to female characters.

Printed in daring Periwinkle on our 100% Black Preshrunk Cotton Tee.