A List of Japanese Mimetic and Onomatopoeic Words

08/09/2020Updated 15/08/20211 min read

Translated from the Vietnamese original. View the original.

A list of Japanese mimetic and onomatopoeic words
Here is a list of the mimetic and onomatopoeic words most used in Japanese.
Mimetic and onomatopoeic words are used to express the speaker's actions and feelings, and the state of things and events.
We hope the material above is useful to you as a learner of Japanese.

The list of mimetic words (ぎたい語) and onomatopoeic words (ぎおん語) is drawn from the course book 日本語単語スピードマスター Standard 2400.

No.	Japanese	Romaji	Meaning
1	イライラ	iraira	impatient
2	うっかり	ukkari	absent-minded, unthinking
3	カラカラ	karakara	bone dry
4	ギリギリ	girigiri	only just, right up to the limit
5	ぐっすり	gussuri	sleeping soundly
6	じっくり	jikkuri	thoroughly
7	じっと (する）	jitto	still, not moving
8	すっきり	sukkiri	refreshed
9	すらすら	surasura	flowing smoothly
10	そっくり	sokkuri	exactly like; the very image of
11	そっと	sotto	quietly; silently
12	ドキドキする	Dokidoki suru	nervous, on edge
13	ドキッと	dokitto	suddenly
14	ニコニコ	nikoniko	smiling
15	ニッコリ（する）	nikkori	beaming
16	のんびりする	Nonbiri suru	at leisure (usually of resting)
17	ゆっくり	yukkuri	slowly, unhurried
18	バラバラ（な)	barabara	disjointed
19	ピカピカ（する)	pikapika	brilliantly bright
20	びしょびしょ	bishobisho	soaked
21	ぴったり	pittari	a perfect fit; exactly
22	ふらふら（する)	furafura	unsteady, wobbling
23	ペラペラ	perapera	fluent; flowing
24	わくわくする	Wakuwaku suru	excited; delightful