Learn Japanese Pod with Ami and Alex
Podcast 40: Daily Japanese Onomatopoeia

In this lesson you will learn the following:✓ Useful Japanese onomatopoeia which are words that resemble sounds✓ How to use Japanese onomatopoeia in naturally daily conversation

Learn Japanese PodIntroduction
In this lesson you will learn all about Japanese onomatopoeia which are words that resemble
sounds. Some examples in English are splash, bang, zap and beep and you will learn how
similar words are used in daily Japanese conversation. Check out the dialogue and grammar
notes below.

How to study
This lesson includes the main podcast lesson, PDF show notes and an extra audio drill. You canfind all of these resources by going to https://learnjapanesepod.com and clicking on the title forthis lesson.
In the main podcast lesson Ami Sensei and Alex demonstrate the main dialogue, briefly explain
the grammar and talk about other Japan related topics.
Then you can use these show notes to read through and study in more depth. We include
grammar and vocabulary explanations to better understand the main lesson dialogue.
Finally, you can use the Japanese dialogue only audio file to practice your listening. You canlisten to the audio, phrase by phrase, and then repeat afterwards to practice your speaking andlistening skills.
To access the audio podcast for this lesson go to https://learnjapanesepod.com and navigate tothis lesson.

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Main Dialog 1 - Daily Japanese Onomatopoeia (Japanese)
A: ね、外見て、雨がザーザー降っているよ。
B: 雷もゴロゴロ鳴ってる。ハラハラする。
A: え？どうしたの？大丈夫？
B: 天気が悪くなると頭がクラクラするんだ。
A: ちょっと休んだら？
B: うん、そうする。

Main Dialog 1 - Daily Japanese Onomatopoeia (Pronunciation)
A: Ne, soto mite, ame ga zaa zaa futteru yo.
B: Kaminari mo gorogoro natteru. Hara hara suru.
A: E? Dōshita no. Daijōbu?
B: Tenki ga waruku naru to atama ga kurakura surun da.
A: Chotto yasundara?
B: Un, sō suru.

Main Dialog 1 - Daily Japanese Onomatopoeia (English)
A: Hey, look outside, it’s raining really hard.
B: The thunder is rumbling too. I feel kinda nervous.
A: Eh? What’s the matter? Are you OK?
B: When the weather turns bad my head gets dizzy.
A: Why don’t you have a rest?
B: Yup, I’ll do that.

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Japanese Onomatopoeia
In this lesson we are studying Japanese onomatopoeia. Onomatopoeia are words that
resemble sounds such as splash, bang and beep. Japanese also has onomatopoeia
and they are called 擬音語 Giongo.
There is a huge number of Japanese giongo and they are frequently used in casual
daily conversation. Therefore they are worth learning as they will improve yourcomprehension and make you sound more natural when speaking.
However, because there are so many giongo, it would be impossible to teach them all ina single lesson. Also, students of Japanese sometimes feel overwhelmed by the sheer
number of them. However, if you get regular listening and speaking practice inJapanese, you can eventually start to pick them up naturally.
You’ll notice a common pattern with most giongo which is a pair of repeating sounds las
below (although there are exceptions):
コロコロ
ドキドキ

Korokoro
Dokidoki

The sound of something rolling
Excitement (from the sound of a beating heart)

Another thing you might notice is that some giongo are written in Katakana and others
Hiragana. There aren’t any strict rules on this but generally speaking, Hiragana is used
for softer sounds and Katakana for harder sounds.
Also, although it’s not strictly necessary to learn the following grammar rules, giongo are
divided up into five different types.

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Here are the five types and examples:
1. 擬音語 Giongo
These are words that resemble sounds made by inanimate objects and nature as
mentioned before.
ゴロゴロ - Gorogoro - Rumbling (thunder)
コロコロ - Korokoro - Sound of rolling
ガタガタ - Gatagata - Rattling
ガチャ - Gacha - Sound of a door closing or similar sound
2. 擬態語 Gitaigo
These describe conditions and states of things.
クラクラ - Kurakura - Feeling dizzy
すべすべ - Subesube - Smooth to the touch
フワフワ - Fuwafuwa - Fluffy
もちもち - Mochimochi - Chewy, sticky, squidgy
3. 擬声語 Giseigo
These are animal and human sounds.
ワンワン - Wanwan - Woof
ニャン - Nyan - Meow
コケコッコー - Kokekokkoo - Cock-a-doodle-doo
ゲロゲロ - Gerogero - Croak (frog)
ガオー - Gaoo - Roar (lion, tiger etc.)
4. 擬容語 Giyōgo
These describe movements and motions.
ノロノロ - Noronoro - Move very slowly
ぐっすり - Gussuri - Sleep soundly
ブルブル - Buruburu - To shiver

Learn Japanese Pod5. 擬情語 Gijōgo
These describe feelings and emotions.
ウキウキ - Ukiuki - Excitement
ワクワク - Wakuwaku - Excitement
もやもや - Moyamoya - To feel uneasy or gloomy
Random phrase of the week
出た！ Deta!
Most students of Japanese will immediately recognize 出た deta as the verb whichmeans to leave, exit or go out of something. However, there is deeper meaning.
Deta can be used as a negative criticism or a tease in response to something someone
says repeatedly. In this scenario it means something like “oh here we go again” or “Ohno, not that again” or “Again?”.
So if someone starts talking about their favorite conspiracy theory again you can say:
出た！
Or your uncle starts talking about his health problems for the 100th time:
出た！
Or your mum starts bugging you to do the chores yet again:
出た！
Of course this isn’t very polite so only use this with your friends and family members.

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Hi, this is Alex, the creator of LearnJapanese Pod. Thanks for downloadingthese show notes, I hope you find them
useful. If you need any help with yourJapanese or have any questions orcomments please drop me a line at
info@learnjapanesepod.com
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