トントン

とんとん
adverb, noun, onomatopoeia
knock-knock; break even
onomatopoeia
1. knock-knock, tap-tap
The sound of light, rhythmic knocking or tapping, as on a door or with a knife while chopping.
ドアをトントンと叩(たた)く。
To knock on the door.
包丁(ほうちょう)でトントンと野菜(やさい)を切(き)る音(おと)が聞(き)こえた。
I could hear the tap-tap-tap of vegetables being chopped with a knife.
肩(かた)をトントンと叩(たた)かれて振(ふ)り向(む)いた。
Someone tapped me on the shoulder and I turned around.
2. break even, even
A state where gains and losses balance out, resulting in neither profit nor loss.
今月(こんげつ)はトントンだった。
This month we broke even.
売上(うりあげ)と経費(けいひ)がトントンで利益(りえき)はほぼゼロだ。
Sales and expenses are about even, so profit is nearly zero.
副業(ふくぎょう)を始(はじ)めたけど、初期(しょき)投資(とうし)を考(かんが)えるとまだトントンくらいだ。
I started a side business, but factoring in the initial investment, I'm still just about breaking even.

Two distinct uses

The onomatopoeic sense (knocking/tapping) and the financial sense (break even) are unrelated in origin. The break-even meaning may come from the image of two sides being evenly balanced.

Common patterns

As onomatopoeia: used with と: トントンと叩(たた)く (to tap/knock).
As break-even: used as a noun/na-adjective: トントンだ (to be break-even).

Common collocations

Related Words

Compare: ぽんぽん (pop-pop)
general
Added 2026.2.12 20:47 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01
11000/11022_tonton