ぞくぞく

adverb, onomatopoeia

shivering; thrilled; excited (mimetic)

1. shivering with cold; getting chills

Mimetic expression for a chilly, shivery sensation along the spine — typically from cold air or the early stages of a fever.

I'm getting chills down my back.

I can't sleep because I'm shivering, probably from a cold.

When I opened the window at night, the cold air gave me a shivering chill.

2. thrilled; tingling with excitement or fear

Used for an intense, tingling feeling of excitement, anticipation, or fear — the figurative 'shivers' down one's spine.

Watching the scary movie gave me thrills.

While waiting for the match result, I couldn't stop feeling tingling excitement.

Thinking that I'd stand on a big stage for the first time, I felt a thrilling tension.

Mimetic (giseigo) word describing a tingling, shivery sensation. Almost always used with する.

Sense 1 is physical: cold, fever, sudden chill
Sense 2 is emotional: thrill, anticipation, dread
Context usually makes the sense clear; with 寒気(さむけ)/風邪(かぜ)/冷(つめ)たい it is sense 1

ぶるぶる: trembling; shaking — visible physical shaking, not internal tingling
わくわく: thrilled with anticipation — positive only; less intense than sense-2 ぞくぞく
どきどき: heart pounding — focus on the heartbeat, not the spine

Related Words

Compare: ぶるぶる (trembling)

general

Added 2026.5.12 12:04 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:02

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