{"id":2207,"date":"2025-09-26T22:46:15","date_gmt":"2025-09-26T13:46:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/?p=2207"},"modified":"2026-02-03T15:24:27","modified_gmt":"2026-02-03T06:24:27","slug":"what-is-kori-gori-the-japanese-expression-of-being-fed-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/?p=2207","title":{"rendered":"What Is \u201cKori Gori\u201d? The Japanese Expression of Being Fed Up"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Ever had such a bad experience that you swore, \u201cNever again!\u201d?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Or gotten so tired of something that even hearing about it makes you shrink away?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That\u2019s when Japanese speakers might use <strong>\u201cKori Gori\u201d (\u3053\u308a\u3054\u308a)<\/strong> \u2014 but here\u2019s the twist:<br>It sounds like an onomatopoeia, yet it\u2019s <strong>not actually one<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Before we dive in, hear how it sounds in Japanese conversation!<\/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_\u3053\u308a\u3054\u308a.mp3\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is \u201cKori Gori\u201d (\u3053\u308a\u3054\u308a)?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cKori Gori\u201d is a Japanese expression meaning <strong>\u201cI\u2019ve had enough\u201d<\/strong>, <strong>\u201cI\u2019m fed up\u201d<\/strong>, or <strong>\u201cNever again.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s used to strongly reject repeating a negative experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After a scary accident \u2192 <strong>Kori Gori <\/strong>(I\u2019m done with driving.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After a bad meal \u2192 <strong>Kori Gori! <\/strong>(Never again!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Pronunciation<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>ko-ree go-ree<br>(Say it with a firm, rejecting tone, as if pushing something away.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Categories<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Emotion<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Not an Onomatopoeia!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Although it sounds like an onomatopoeia, \u201ckori gori\u201d is <strong>actually an idiomatic adverbial expression<\/strong>.<br><br>It doesn\u2019t mimic sound or state \u2014 instead, it conveys a <strong>personal feeling of rejection<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This makes it different from playful onomatopoeia like <em>doki doki<\/em> (heart beating) or <em>gura gura<\/em> (wobbling).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"50\" height=\"50\" src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/niko_2.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-136\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Does \u201cKori Gori\u201d Feel Like?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>It feels like pushing away a plate of food you can\u2019t eat anymore.<br>Like backing away after a bad fall.<br>Like saying \u201cThat\u2019s it. Never again.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"265\" height=\"80\" src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/korigori_t-1.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2210\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How Do You Say It?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Say it sharply, with finality:<br>Kori\u2026 gori!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Like you\u2019re cutting off any possibility of repeating the bad experience.<\/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_\u3053\u308a\u3054\u308a.mp3\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Example in Daily Life<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Example: Bad sushi experience<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>He ate spoiled sushi once,<br>and ever since then he said \u2014<br><strong>Kori Gori!<\/strong> (Never again!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"320\" height=\"218\" src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/korigori_1.png\" alt=\"kori gori, Japanese sound words, onomatopoeia\" class=\"wp-image-2211\" srcset=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/korigori_1.png 320w, https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/korigori_1-300x204.png 300w\" 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, similar expressions include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>\u201cI\u2019m fed up.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u201cNever again.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u201cI\u2019ve had enough.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>But \u201ckori gori\u201d has a uniquely <strong>emotional, almost onomatopoeia-like sound<\/strong>, which makes it easy to remember and impactful when spoken.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Watch &amp; Feel the \u201cKori Gori\u201d World!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Experiencing regret in amusement parks<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Look at the people feeling <strong>Kori Gori!<\/strong><\/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=SAM1JQG-7fs\"\n     target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\n     aria-label=\"Watch this video on YouTube\">\n    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/SAM1JQG-7fs\/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=SAM1JQG-7fs\"\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 you\u2019ve had a bad experience\u2026<br>When something left you disappointed\u2026<br>When you want to say \u201cNever again\u201d\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Say it firmly:<br>Kori gori!<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"p-blogParts post_content\" data-partsID=\"4929\">\n<div class=\"swell-block-capbox cap_box is-style-intext\"><div class=\"cap_box_ttl\"><span>More Emotion-based Onomatopoeia:<\/span><\/div><div class=\"cap_box_content\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/?cat=37\">\n  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/mint_background-x300_emotion_enter__.png\"\n       alt=\"illustration for emotion-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=\"4949\">\n<div class=\"swell-block-fullWide pc-py-60 sp-py-40 alignfull\" style=\"background-color:#f7f7f7\"><div class=\"swell-block-fullWide__inner l-article\">\n<div class=\"swell-block-capbox cap_box is-style-intext\"><div class=\"cap_box_ttl\"><span>More Almost Onomatopoeia:<\/span><\/div><div class=\"cap_box_content\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/?cat=33\">\n  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/white_candy_blue_-1_.png\"\n       alt=\"Almost Onomatopoeia!\"\n       class=\"puni-top-image\"\n       style=\"border-radius: 15px;\">\n<\/a>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n\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 had such a bad experience that you swore, \u201cNever again!\u201d? Or gotten so tired of something that even hearing about it makes you shrink away? That\u2019s when Japanese speakers might use \u201cKori Gori\u201d (\u3053\u308a\u3054\u308a) \u2014 but here\u2019s the twist:It sounds like an onomatopoeia, yet it\u2019s not actually one. Before we dive in, hear how [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2212,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"swell_btn_cv_data":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[37,33],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2207","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-_emotion-based","category-almost-onomatopoeia"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2207","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=2207"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2207\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6460,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2207\/revisions\/6460"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2207"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2207"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2207"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}