{"id":1767,"date":"2025-09-20T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-19T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/?p=1767"},"modified":"2026-03-29T18:01:06","modified_gmt":"2026-03-29T09:01:06","slug":"what-is-poro-poro-the-japanese-sound-of-things-falling-bit-by-bit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/?p=1767","title":{"rendered":"What Is \u201cPoro Poro\u201d? The Japanese Sound of Things Falling Bit by Bit"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Ever seen tears well up and roll down one after another?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Or crumbs falling from bread as you take a bite?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That\u2019s when the Japanese onomatopoeia \u201c<strong>Poro Poro<\/strong>\u201d (\u307d\u308d\u307d\u308d) comes in \u2014 a sound and image of little things dropping, bit by bit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Before we dive in, hear what it sounds like!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio\"><audio controls src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/001_\u305a\u3093\u3060\u3082\u3093\uff08\u30ce\u30fc\u30de\u30eb\uff09_\u307d\u308d\u307d\u308d.mp3\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is \u201cPoro Poro\u201d (\u307d\u308d\u307d\u308d)?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201c<strong>Poro Poro<\/strong>\u201d is a Japanese onomatopoeia that describes something small falling continuously in little pieces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s used in two common ways:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Tears or drops<\/strong> falling one after another.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Small objects or crumbs<\/strong> breaking off and falling.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>It gives a sense of delicateness, lightness, and sometimes sadness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Pronunciation<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>po-ro po-ro<br>(Say it lightly, with a soft rhythm \u2014 like small drops falling one by one.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Categories<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Motion \/ Condition<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"swell-block-postLink\">\t\t\t<div class=\"p-blogCard -internal\" data-type=\"type1\" data-onclick=\"clickLink\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"p-blogCard__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"p-blogCard__caption\">\u3042\u308f\u305b\u3066\u8aad\u307f\u305f\u3044<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"p-blogCard__thumb c-postThumb\"><figure class=\"c-postThumb__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/boro_main2-300x199.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"c-postThumb__img u-obf-cover\" width=\"320\" height=\"180\"><\/figure><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"p-blogCard__body\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"p-blogCard__title\" href=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/?p=253\">What Does \u201cBoro Boro\u201d Mean in Japanese? The Word for Falling Apart, Worn-Out, or in Shambles<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"p-blogCard__excerpt\">When something is falling apart \u2014 whether it\u2019s old clothes, your test scores, or even your heart \u2014 the Japanese onomatopoeia \u201cBoro Boro\u201d (\u307c\u308d\u307c\u308d) captures &#8230;<\/span>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Does \u201cPoro Poro\u201d Look Like?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>It looks like breadcrumbs scattering on the table.<br>Like cherry blossoms drifting down slowly.<br>Like tears streaming gently down cheeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"265\" height=\"82\" src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/poro_t.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1769\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How Do You Say It?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Say it gently, almost like you\u2019re letting something slip away:<br><strong>Poro\u2026 poro\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Like beads dropping from a string:<br><strong>Poro poro\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio\"><audio controls src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/001_\u305a\u3093\u3060\u3082\u3093\uff08\u30ce\u30fc\u30de\u30eb\uff09_\u307d\u308d\u307d\u308d.mp3\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Examples in Daily Life<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Example 1: Tears falling<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Her eyes filled,<br>and tears fell one after another \u2014<br><strong>poro poro\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"320\" height=\"320\" src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/poro_1.png\" alt=\"poro poro, Japanese sound words, onomatopoeia\" class=\"wp-image-1772\" srcset=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/poro_1.png 320w, https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/poro_1-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/poro_1-150x150.png 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 320px) 100vw, 320px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Example 2: Crumbs dropping<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>He bit into the cookie,<br>and little crumbs scattered to the floor \u2014<br><strong>poro poro\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"320\" height=\"320\" src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/poro_2.png\" alt=\"poro poro, Japanese sound words, onomatopoeia\" class=\"wp-image-1773\" srcset=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/poro_2.png 320w, https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/poro_2-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/poro_2-150x150.png 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 320px) 100vw, 320px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Cultural Note<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In English, we might say:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cDropping little by little.\u201d<br>\u201cTears rolling down.\u201d<br>\u201cCrumbs falling apart.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But in Japanese, <strong><em>poro poro<\/em> <\/strong>creates a vivid sound-and-feel image, often carrying an emotional tone \u2014 like sadness, fragility, or something quietly breaking down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Watch &amp; Feel the \u201cPoro Poro\u201d World!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Feel the \u201cporo poro\u201d \u2014 gentle drops, little falls.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The cow is dropping bits of food from its mouth. Take a good look!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"position:relative; width:60%; margin:0 auto; text-align:center;\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=5bfhqqIiFL4\"\n     target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\n     aria-label=\"Watch this video on YouTube\">\n    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/5bfhqqIiFL4\/hqdefault.jpg\"\n         alt=\"Watch on YouTube\"\n         style=\"width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:10px;\">\n    <div style=\"position:absolute; top:50%; left:50%; transform:translate(-50%,-50%);\n                font-size:32px; color:white; background:rgba(0,0,0,0.6);\n                padding:8px 12px; border-radius:50%;\">\n      \u25b6\n    <\/div>\n  <\/a>\n\n  <div style=\"margin-top:8px; font-weight:600;\">\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=5bfhqqIiFL4\"\n       target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\n       style=\"color:#78e2c8; text-decoration:none;\">\n      \u25b6 Watch on YouTube\n    <\/a>\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Try Using It!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>When tears roll down silently\u2026<br>When crumbs fall as you eat\u2026<br>When petals drift down from a tree\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Say it softly:<br><strong>Poro poro<\/strong>\u301c<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"p-blogParts post_content\" data-partsID=\"4926\">\n<div class=\"swell-block-capbox cap_box is-style-intext\"><div class=\"cap_box_ttl\"><span>More Motion-based Onomatopoeia:<\/span><\/div><div class=\"cap_box_content\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/?cat=36\">\n  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/mint_background-x300_motion_enter.png\"\n       alt=\"illustration for motion-based category\"\n       class=\"puni-top-image\"\n       style=\"border-radius: 15px;\">\n<\/a>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"p-blogParts post_content\" data-partsID=\"4936\">\n<div class=\"swell-block-capbox cap_box is-style-intext\"><div class=\"cap_box_ttl\"><span>More Condition-based Onomatopoeia:<\/span><\/div><div class=\"cap_box_content\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/?cat=39\">\n  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/mint_background-x300_condiion_enter.png\"\n       alt=\"illustration for condition-based category\"\n       class=\"puni-top-image\"\n       style=\"border-radius: 15px;\">\n<\/a>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"swell-block-button is-style-btn_normal\"><a href=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\" class=\"swell-block-button__link\"><span>Home<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ever seen tears well up and roll down one after another? Or crumbs falling from bread as you take a bite? That\u2019s when the Japanese onomatopoeia \u201cPoro Poro\u201d (\u307d\u308d\u307d\u308d) comes in \u2014 a sound and image of little things dropping, bit by bit. Before we dive in, hear what it sounds like! What is \u201cPoro [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1774,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"swell_btn_cv_data":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[39,36],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1767","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-_condition-based","category-_motion-based"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1767","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1767"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1767\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7678,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1767\/revisions\/7678"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1774"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1767"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1767"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1767"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}