ばらばら

ばらばら
adverb
scattered; in pieces; disjointed
1. scattered; in pieces
Describes things that are separated, scattered, or not together.
書類(しょるい)がばらばらになっている。
The documents are scattered.
家族(かぞく)はばらばらに()んでいる。
The family members live separately.
地震(じしん)本棚(ほんだな)(ほん)がばらばらに()ちた。
The books fell off the bookshelf and scattered in the earthquake.
2. varied; inconsistent
Describes opinions, times, or qualities that differ from each other.
意見(いけん)がばらばらで()まらない。
We can't decide because opinions vary so much.
集合(しゅうごう)時間(じかん)がばらばらで(こま)る。
The meeting times are all different, which is a problem.
テストの点数(てんすう)はばらばらで、(たか)(ひと)もいれば(ひく)(ひと)もいた。
The test scores were all over the place — some people scored high, others low.

ばらばら is an onomatopoeic word (擬態{語()|ぎたいご}) describing separation or inconsistency.

COMMON PATTERNS:

  • ばらばらになる: to become scattered/separated
  • ばらばらに()む: to live separately
  • 意見(いけん)がばらばら: opinions are divided

SIMILAR WORDS:

  • めちゃくちゃ: messed up, chaotic
  • ぐちゃぐちゃ: jumbled, mixed up