ぴたり

ぴたり
adverb
exactly; precisely; perfectly; suddenly stopping
1. exactly; precisely; perfectly
Describes something fitting, matching, or hitting a target with perfect accuracy.
(こた)えがぴたりと()った。
The answer matched exactly.
この(ふく)はぴたりと(からだ)()う。
These clothes fit the body perfectly.
予想(よそう)がぴたりと()たって、みんな(おどろ)いた。
The prediction was spot on, and everyone was surprised.
2. suddenly stopping; coming to a complete halt
Describes something ceasing abruptly and completely, such as rain stopping or a noise ending.
(あめ)がぴたりと()んだ。
The rain stopped abruptly.
(かぜ)がぴたりと()まった。
The wind came to a sudden stop.
連絡(れんらく)がぴたりと途絶(とだ)えて、心配(しんぱい)になった。
Contact suddenly ceased completely, and I became worried.

An expressive onomatopoeic adverb that conveys precision or abrupt cessation. Almost always followed by the particle と.

COMMON COLLOCATIONS:

  • ぴたりと()う: to fit/match exactly
  • ぴたりと()たる: to be spot on, to hit the mark
  • ぴたりと()まる: to stop dead
  • ぴたりと()む: to cease abruptly
  • ぴたりと()める: to shut tightly

RELATED WORDS:

  • ぴったり: the more common colloquial form with the same meanings; used more frequently in everyday speech
  • ぴたっと: a slightly more casual variant
  • ぴたり is somewhat more literary or dramatic than ぴったり

NOTE:
The と particle is almost always present: ぴたりと. Using ぴたり without と is possible but sounds more literary or poetic.