ほっぺた
ほっぺた
noun
cheek (informal)
1.
cheek (informal)
The fleshy side of the face below the eye, referred to in a casual and often affectionate way, especially when talking about children.
ほっぺたが赤くなった。
My cheeks turned red.
赤ちゃんのほっぺたはやわらかい。
A baby's cheeks are soft.
このケーキはほっぺたが落ちるほどおいしい。
This cake is so delicious your cheeks could fall off.
An informal, affectionate word for cheek. It is a colloquial variant of 頬/頬, with ほっぺ being an even shorter casual form.
USAGE:
- Used in casual conversation, especially when talking about children or in an affectionate context
- Not appropriate for formal or medical contexts, where 頬 or 頬 is used instead
- Often associated with cute, round, or soft cheeks
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- ほっぺたが落ちる: so delicious your cheeks could fall off (idiomatic)
- ほっぺたをつねる: to pinch someone's cheek
- ほっぺたが赤い: to have red cheeks
- ほっぺたをふくらませる: to puff out one's cheeks (in displeasure)
RELATED FORMS:
- 頬/頬: the standard word for cheek
- ほっぺ: an even more casual/childish variant
- 頬っぺた: variant spelling showing the etymological connection