ぽつぽつ
ぽつぽつ
adverb, onomatopoeia
bit by bit; sparsely; in drops; here and there
1.
bit by bit; little by little; gradually
Describes something happening slowly, one piece at a time, often in an unhurried or leisurely manner.
ぽつぽつと話し始めた。
They started talking little by little.
客がぽつぽつと集まってきた。
Customers started gathering one by one.
2.
sparsely; scattered; here and there
Describes things that are spread out with spaces between them, appearing intermittently.
3.
in drops; dripping
Describes rain or liquid falling in scattered drops.
雨がぽつぽつと降り始めた。
Rain started falling in scattered drops.
USAGE:
ぽつぽつ(と) + verb
Sense 1 (bit by bit):
- ぽつぽつ話す (to speak bit by bit)
- ぽつぽつ始まる (to start gradually)
- ぽつぽつ集まる (to gather one by one)
Sense 2 (sparse distribution):
- 白髪がぽつぽつ出てきた (gray hairs are appearing here and there)
- 星がぽつぽつ見える (stars are visible scattered about)
Sense 3 (drops of rain/liquid):
- 雨がぽつぽつ (rain in scattered drops)
NUANCE:
Conveys a leisurely, unhurried pace with gaps between occurrences. Often suggests something is just beginning or happening intermittently.
SIMILAR WORDS:
- ぽつりぽつり - Similar meaning (variant)
- ちらほら - Here and there, scattered
- ぼちぼち - Bit by bit, so-so (Kansai dialect)
Related Words
Synonym:
ちらほら (here and there)