Comments on: Japanese Onomatopoeia

By: Ingeborg

Ingeborg — Sun, 15 Jan 2017 17:19:43 +0000

The mimetics I’d love to know would best be described as cuddle-talk…how would you describe a soft, cozy blanket or a big comforting hug with Japanese “sound effects”?

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Thu, 12 May 2016 00:07:12 +0000

This is the aspect of Japanese that I hated learning most (I have more or less given up mastering it). I feel that these words are largely arbitrary, too numerous, and rob native speakers of the ability to be articulate in other languages. It’s hard to explain even simple words like “crispy” or “grimy” to grown adults who have associated these concepts to arbitrary sounds that they often believe to be universally applicable. Japanese people are typically shocked to hear that the word “kuru-kuru” does not at all sound like anything whirly or spinny to me. It’s just so hard for us foreigners to get a feel for them, and so hard for Japanese people to break out of it.

By: Japanese Culture For Foreigners: 19 Insider Secrets You Need To Know

Japanese Culture For Foreigners: 19 Insider Secrets You Need To Know — Wed, 04 Nov 2015 21:05:33 +0000

[…] Tofugu has the ultimate guide on onomatopoeia, but if you’d like a more concise overview you can also check out RocketNews24 or Nihonshock. […]

By: couzio

couzio — Tue, 24 Mar 2015 21:04:16 +0000

I want to buy cheatsheet. but, I dont know how to buy it with paypal etc ?
would you like help me,…

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 13 Feb 2014 07:11:27 +0000

I was looking ALL over for an explanation of this. Thank god! This is something that is so widely used but so infrequently explained.

By: Jak

Jak — Sat, 07 Dec 2013 07:21:40 +0000

Thanks, picked up the cheat sheet, comes in handy often I think.

By: Enhancing Your Verb Vocabulary With Onomatopoeia | Learn Japanese Language Online

Sun, 08 Sep 2013 23:12:43 +0000

[…] Sources: Japanese Onomatopoeia […]

By: Enhancing Your Verb Vocabulary With Onomatopoeia | Tofugu

Enhancing Your Verb Vocabulary With Onomatopoeia | Tofugu — Thu, 05 Sep 2013 16:31:08 +0000

[…] Sources: Japanese Onomatopoeia […]

By: M Erik K

M Erik K — Wed, 15 May 2013 12:24:08 +0000

I thought it worth pointing out that Japanese onomatopoeia extend well beyond just 擬声語, which is the actual word for onomatopoeia/phonomimes; 擬態語 are phenomimes meaning that they relate to phenomena that you perceive by some sense that isn’t listening; and 擬態語 can also refer to psychomimes,which are sounds meant to represent psychological states. This is only really important for distinguishing how much more important it is to Japanese than to English, but I figured I’d chip in.

By: SJamon

SJamon — Fri, 10 May 2013 01:20:29 +0000

Thanks for the hard work, this has been bothering me ever since I arrived in Japan. No matter how many you get to know, you’re likely to hear a new one every minute every day…
And since it seems so self-explanatory to native speakers, they kind of think you’re a retard when you don’t get it and ask for explanation.

The worst is, one can’t find any textbook or document even just mentioning it, yet everybody is speaking Pokemonese all around you…
Some people even seem to know no actual words and use and abuse of these gitaigo, which in most cases don’t live up to the name at all by the way

Simply put, you made my day, thanks again ^^

And if I may add an example I love :
mofumofu : seems to be a mix of mokomoko (fluffy) and fuwafuwa (fluffy as well), and means… well, even more fluffy