ぐうぐう
gūgū
The Japanese phrase for "zzz" is ぐうぐう (gūgū).
ぐうぐう is an onomatopoeia used to represent the sound of someone sleeping.
How do you pronounce it?
gūgū
Did you know?
- The word ぐう appears in the idiom ぐうの音も出ない, which describes being so defeated in an argument that you are rendered speechless.
- In manga and anime, the English 'zzz' is frequently imported and used as a visual symbol instead of ぐうぐう to signal that a character is asleep.
- While ぐうぐう mimics deep snoring, Japanese also uses すやすや to describe the soft and rhythmic breathing of a baby or a peaceful sleeper.
Examples in context
- 彼はよく眠っている。He sleeps well.
- 会議中に入眠してしまった。I fell asleep during the meeting.
- 昨夜はぐうぐう寝ていた。I slept soundly last night.
- 今とても眠い。I am very sleepy right now.
- 赤ちゃんがぐうぐう寝ている。Akachan ga guuguu nete iru.The baby is sleeping soundly.
- 彼はテストの後にぐうぐう眠った。Kare wa tesuto no ato ni guuguu nemutta.He slept deeply after the test.
- 犬がぐうぐうと寝ている声が聞こえる。Inu ga guuguu to nete iru koe ga kikoeru.I can hear the dog sleeping soundly.
Example conversation
Hina and Yota are looking at a sleeping cat.
- 陽葵 Himari見て、猫がぐうぐう寝てるよ。Mite, neko ga guuguu neteru yo.Look, the cat is fast asleep.
- 陽太 Yota本当に気持ちよさそうに寝てるね。Hontou ni kimochiyousou ni neteru ne.It really looks like it's sleeping comfortably.
- 陽葵 Himariぐうぐういう音が聞こえるね。Guuguu iu oto ga kikoeru ne.I can hear the snoring sound.
- 陽太 Yota起こさないように静かにしよう。Okosanai you ni shizuka ni shiyou.Let's be quiet so we don't wake it up.
