ぽつぽつ
ぽつぽつ
adverb, onomatopoeia
bit by bit; sparsely; in drops; here and there
Conjugation
| Affirmative | Negative | |
|---|---|---|
| Present | ぽつぽつ | ぽつぽたない |
| Present polite | ぽつぽちます | ぽつぽちません |
| Past | ぽつぽった | ぽつぽたなかった |
| Past polite | ぽつぽちました | ぽつぽちませんでした |
| て form | ぽつぽって | ぽつぽたなくて |
| ている present | ぽつぽっている | ぽつぽっていない |
| ている polite | ぽつぽっています | ぽつぽっていません |
| ている past | ぽつぽっていた | ぽつぽっていなかった |
| ている past polite | ぽつぽっていました | ぽつぽっていませんでした |
| Conditional ば | ぽつぽてば | ぽつぽたなければ |
| Conditional たら | ぽつぽったら | ぽつぽたなかったら |
| Volitional | ぽつぽとう | — |
| Volitional polite | ぽつぽちましょう | — |
| Potential | ぽつぽてる | ぽつぽてない |
| Passive | ぽつぽたれる | ぽつぽたれない |
| Causative | ぽつぽたせる | ぽつぽたせない |
| Imperative | ぽつぽて | ぽつぽつな |
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.
彼はぽつぽつと過去のことを語り始めた。
He slowly began to talk about the past, bit by bit.
夕方になると、ぽつぽつと屋台が開き始める。
In the evening, food stalls start opening one by one.
2.
sparsely; scattered; here and there
Describes things that are spread out with spaces between them, appearing intermittently.
白髪がぽつぽつと出てきた。
Gray hairs are starting to appear here and there.
道にぽつぽつと街灯が立っている。
Streetlights stand scattered along the road.
空にぽつぽつと星が見え始めた。
Stars started appearing here and there in the sky.
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.
窓にぽつぽつと雨粒が当たる音が聞こえる。
I can hear the sound of raindrops hitting the window one by one.
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)