ぐつぐつ
ぐつぐつ
boiling
I'm always torn when writing these onomatopoeia lessons.
The thing is, there is always the temptation to start listing "similar" or "slightly different" onomatopoeic Japanese. But if we tried to do that for each of these lessons, they'd end up being unbearably long, and they'd probably leave the majority of us feeling more confused than anything.
Take ぐつぐつ, for example. This word refers to the sound or state of something that is "boiling." But it's not something that is boiling strongly — that is, it doesn't refer to a "rolling boil." And it doesn't refer to "simmering," which would be weaker than ぐつぐつ. It's just "boiling."
Thus, while looking at the lesson on ぐつぐつ, I'm tempted to start talking about onomatopoeia for the other types of boiling. And then there's the issue of similar-sounding onomatopoeia, which we could talk about in every single one of these lessons.
But we don't teach words without sentences. And we try to include enough sentences to really give a sense of a word's meaning and usage... which means that if we start covering all of these different onomatopoeia in a single lesson, you and I will be drowning in similar-sounding words and sentences, much like I did years ago when I bought some books on Japanese onomatopoeia.
I felt I wasn't learning anything from those books, so they sat on my shelves unread for... well, forever.
The onomatopoeia I did learn were the ones that I heard people using in real life — onomatopoeia learned in situations appropriate for them to be used.
Hopefully that's what we're managing with these lessons...
A Japanese definition of ぐつぐつ isn't all that helpful:
物の煮えたつ音や、そのさまを表す語。
もの の にえたつ おと や、 その さま を あらわす ご。
the sound of boiling; a word signifying this kind of state
Literally: “thing + の + boil + sound + や, + that + state + を + signify / represent + word / language.”
Source: goo辞書
It might be helpful to just listen to 12 hours of ぐつぐつ sound on YouTube.
Let's look at some examples...
蓋をして、柔らかくなるまでグツグツ煮込んだら完成です。
ふた を して、 やわらかく なる まで グツグツ にこんだら かんせい です。
Put a lid on it, then let it boil until it becomes soft, and then it’s done.
Literally: “lid + を + do (and), + soft + becomes + until + boiling + if / when boiled + completion + です.”
Note: The nuance of 煮込む (にこむ) is "boiling" something for quite a while.
↑ Did you notice that our sentence doesn't really have any English word corresponding to ぐつぐつ？
I find that this happens a lot when I'm trying to translate onomatopoeia from Japanese into English — I just can't seem to capture the essence of the Japanese in English words.
Maybe I could have put "...then let it boil gently until..." but it seems to me that "a gentle boil" is not quite as "boiling" as ぐつぐつ.
Ah, onomatopoeia. They will be the death of me.
日本人は、ぐつぐつ煮え立つスープを平気で飲む。
にほんじん は、 ぐつぐつ にえたつ スープ を へいき で のむ。
Japanese people eat boiling-hot soup like it’s nothing.
Literally: “Japanese (person) + は, + boiling + boil + soup + を + nonchalantly / without batting an eyelid (=unconcern + で) + drink.”
↑ On multiple occasions, I've heard Japanese people in countries other than Japan complain about their soup or food not being hot enough.
We've talked about this in some of our other lessons, but generally speaking, Japanese people like their food piping HOT!
Go to Japan. Make friends. Go out to eat. Eventually, you will burn your tongue.
That is, if you're cat tongue, like me.
What's cat tongue? You can find out in these lessons:
- [NDL #144] Cat pictures! (Oh, also some cat-related idioms)
- [NDL #151] - Customizing Food Orders in Japan
Note that things other than food can be ぐつぐつ, too:
溶岩がグツグツと音を立てて流れています。
ようがん が グツグツ と おと を たてて ながれています。
The lava is flowing, making bubbling sounds.
Literally: “lava + が + boiling + と + sound + を + make (a sound) (and) + is flowing.”
Finished!
boiling
I'm always torn when writing these onomatopoeia lessons.
The thing is, there is always the temptation to start listing "similar" or "slightly different" onomatopoeic Japanese. But if we tried to do that for each of these lessons, they'd end up being unbearably long, and they'd probably leave the majority of us feeling more confused than anything.
Take ぐつぐつ, for example. This word refers to the sound or state of something that is "boiling." But it's not something that is boiling strongly — that is, it doesn't refer to a "rolling boil." And it doesn't refer to "simmering," which would be weaker than ぐつぐつ. It's just "boiling."
Thus, while looking at the lesson on ぐつぐつ, I'm tempted to start talking about onomatopoeia for the other types of boiling. And then there's the issue of similar-sounding onomatopoeia, which we could talk about in every single one of these lessons.
But we don't teach words without sentences. And we try to include enough sentences to really give a sense of a word's meaning and usage... which means that if we start covering all of these different onomatopoeia in a single lesson, you and I will be drowning in similar-sounding words and sentences, much like I did years ago when I bought some books on Japanese onomatopoeia.
I felt I wasn't learning anything from those books, so they sat on my shelves unread for... well, forever.
The onomatopoeia I did learn were the ones that I heard people using in real life — onomatopoeia learned in situations appropriate for them to be used.
Hopefully that's what we're managing with these lessons...
A Japanese definition of ぐつぐつ isn't all that helpful:
物の煮えたつ音や、そのさまを表す語。
もの の にえたつ おと や、 その さま を あらわす ご。
the sound of boiling; a word signifying this kind of state
Literally: “thing + の + boil + sound + や, + that + state + を + signify / represent + word / language.”
Source: goo辞書
It might be helpful to just listen to 12 hours of ぐつぐつ sound on YouTube.
Let's look at some examples...
蓋をして、柔らかくなるまでグツグツ煮込んだら完成です。
ふた を して、 やわらかく なる まで グツグツ にこんだら かんせい です。
Put a lid on it, then let it boil until it becomes soft, and then it’s done.
Literally: “lid + を + do (and), + soft + becomes + until + boiling + if / when boiled + completion + です.”
Note: The nuance of 煮込む (にこむ) is "boiling" something for quite a while.
↑ Did you notice that our sentence doesn't really have any English word corresponding to ぐつぐつ？
I find that this happens a lot when I'm trying to translate onomatopoeia from Japanese into English — I just can't seem to capture the essence of the Japanese in English words.
Maybe I could have put "...then let it boil gently until..." but it seems to me that "a gentle boil" is not quite as "boiling" as ぐつぐつ.
Ah, onomatopoeia. They will be the death of me.
日本人は、ぐつぐつ煮え立つスープを平気で飲む。
にほんじん は、 ぐつぐつ にえたつ スープ を へいき で のむ。
Japanese people eat boiling-hot soup like it’s nothing.
Literally: “Japanese (person) + は, + boiling + boil + soup + を + nonchalantly / without batting an eyelid (=unconcern + で) + drink.”
↑ On multiple occasions, I've heard Japanese people in countries other than Japan complain about their soup or food not being hot enough.
We've talked about this in some of our other lessons, but generally speaking, Japanese people like their food piping HOT!
Go to Japan. Make friends. Go out to eat. Eventually, you will burn your tongue.
That is, if you're cat tongue, like me.
What's cat tongue? You can find out in these lessons:
- [NDL #144] Cat pictures! (Oh, also some cat-related idioms)
- [NDL #151] - Customizing Food Orders in Japan
Note that things other than food can be ぐつぐつ, too:
溶岩がグツグツと音を立てて流れています。
ようがん が グツグツ と おと を たてて ながれています。
The lava is flowing, making bubbling sounds.
Literally: “lava + が + boiling + と + sound + を + make (a sound) (and) + is flowing.”
Finished!
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