{"id":2939,"date":"2025-11-16T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-11-15T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/?p=2939"},"modified":"2026-01-02T18:28:07","modified_gmt":"2026-01-02T09:28:07","slug":"whats-the-difference-between-meso-meso-and-shiku-shiku-in-japanese","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/?p=2939","title":{"rendered":"What\u2019s the Difference Between \u201cMeso Meso\u201d and \u201cShiku Shiku\u201d in Japanese?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Ever heard someone quietly cry \u2014 sometimes softly sniffling, sometimes silently enduring?<br>In Japanese, there are two delicate ways to describe these shades of sadness:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Meso Meso (\u3081\u305d\u3081\u305d)<\/strong><br><strong>Shiku Shiku (\u3057\u304f\u3057\u304f)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Both express tears and sorrow, but each paints a different emotional scene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is \u201cMeso Meso\u201d (\u3081\u305d\u3081\u305d)?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>A soft, whimpering cry \u2014 weak, childlike, and continuous.<br>It often carries feelings of self-pity or emotional vulnerability rather than deep grief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Used for:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A child sulking or crying after being scolded<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Someone whimpering out of loneliness or hurt feelings<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A person who can\u2019t stop sniffling even after calming down<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Nuance:<\/strong><br>Outward, immature, fragile \u2014 it\u2019s the <em>sound of emotional weakness<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Example:<\/strong><br>He sat alone in the corner,<br>sniffling quietly \u2014<br><strong>meso meso\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Pronunciation<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>meh-so meh-so<br>(Say it in a trembling, whiny tone \u2014 like holding back sobs.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio\"><audio controls src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/001_\u305a\u3093\u3060\u3082\u3093\uff08\u30ce\u30fc\u30de\u30eb\uff09_\u3081\u305d\u3081\u305d.mp3\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is \u201cShiku Shiku\u201d (\u3057\u304f\u3057\u304f)?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>A restrained, quiet cry \u2014 inward, slow, and full of endurance.<br>It\u2019s not childish; it\u2019s the sadness that lingers silently inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Used for:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Someone crying alone at night<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Quiet tears from heartbreak or nostalgia<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Gentle, constant physical or emotional pain<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Nuance:<\/strong><br>Subdued, introspective, melancholic \u2014 it\u2019s the <em>sound of quiet sorrow<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Example:<\/strong><br>She looked down,<br>tears sliding silently \u2014<br><strong>shiku shiku\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Pronunciation<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>shee-koo shee-koo<br>(slow and rhythmic, like soft sobs echoing in silence)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio\"><audio controls src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/001_\u305a\u3093\u3060\u3082\u3093\uff08\u30ce\u30fc\u30de\u30eb\uff09_\u3057\u304f\u3057\u304f.mp3\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Cultural Note<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In English, both could mean <em>crying softly<\/em> or <em>sobbing quietly<\/em>,<br>but the difference lies in emotional direction:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"c-scrollHint sp_\"><span>\u30b9\u30af\u30ed\u30fc\u30eb\u3067\u304d\u307e\u3059 <i class=\"icon-more_arrow\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<figure data-table-scrollable=\"sp\" class=\"wp-block-table\"><table style=\"--table-width:800px;\" class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><tbody><tr><th><strong>Expression<\/strong><\/th><td><strong>Feeling<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Image<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><th>Meso Meso (\u3081\u305d\u3081\u305d)<\/th><td>Outward, childish, tearful<\/td><td>Whimpering, vulnerable<\/td><\/tr><tr><th>Shiku Shiku (\u3057\u304f\u3057\u304f)<\/th><td>Inward, mature, lingering<\/td><td>Quiet pain, endurance<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>So in anime, novels, or daily life:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>When someone <strong>sniffles<\/strong> or <strong>complains while crying<\/strong>, it\u2019s <em>meso meso.<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>When someone <strong>cries quietly, holding it in<\/strong>, it\u2019s <em>shiku shiku.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Examples in Daily Life<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"425\" height=\"168\" src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/meso_shiku_1.png\" alt=\"Meso Meso, Shiku Shiku, meaning, Japanese sound words, onomatopoeia\" class=\"wp-image-2941\" srcset=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/meso_shiku_1.png 425w, https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/meso_shiku_1-300x119.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 425px) 100vw, 425px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Example 1: Whimpering (Meso Meso)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>He was scolded by his boss,<br>and started to whimper \u2014<br><strong>meso meso\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Example 2: Quiet Sorrow (Shiku Shiku)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>She missed her hometown,<br>and cried softly \u2014<br><strong>shiku shiku\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Try Using Them!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>When someone is <em>sniffling or whining tearfully<\/em> \u2192 say <strong>meso meso.<\/strong><br><br>When someone is <em>crying quietly in sorrow<\/em> \u2192 say <strong>shiku shiku.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Each word holds a different heartbeat of sadness \u2014<br>one trembling on the surface, the other sinking deep within.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"p-blogParts post_content\" data-partsID=\"5571\">\n<div class=\"swell-block-capbox cap_box is-style-intext\"><div class=\"cap_box_ttl\"><span>Explore More: Comparison Series<\/span><\/div><div class=\"cap_box_content\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/?cat=19\">\n  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/comarison_x300.png\"\n       alt=\"balance illustration\"\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\n\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ever heard someone quietly cry \u2014 sometimes softly sniffling, sometimes silently enduring?In Japanese, there are two delicate ways to describe these shades of sadness: Meso Meso (\u3081\u305d\u3081\u305d)Shiku Shiku (\u3057\u304f\u3057\u304f) Both express tears and sorrow, but each paints a different emotional scene. What is \u201cMeso Meso\u201d (\u3081\u305d\u3081\u305d)? A soft, whimpering cry \u2014 weak, childlike, and continuous.It [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2942,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"swell_btn_cv_data":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[39,37,35,19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2939","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-_condition-based","category-_emotion-based","category-_sound-based","category-comparison-series"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2939","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=2939"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2939\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5588,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2939\/revisions\/5588"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2942"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2939"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2939"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/punipunidictionary.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2939"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}