びっくり (bikkuri) Japanese meaning: be surprised | Kotomora

びっくり

び

っ

く

り

Common wordJLPTN4Freq.FrequencyTop 5,000

びっくりする · noun or participle which takes 'suru'

Meanings

usually written using kana aloneonomatopoeic or mimetic word

Mimetic word expressing sudden surprise or fright. Can be used as a noun, a suru-verb, or adverbially.

驚おどろくN4sense 1
驚く is the neutral, all-purpose verb for being surprised, while びっくり is a colloquial, mimetic word with a more vivid, everyday feel.
仰ぎょう天てん sense 1
仰天 describes being utterly astonished or flabbergasted and sounds more dramatic and literary than the everyday びっくり.
驚きょう愕がく sense 1
驚愕 is a stronger, more formal word for shock or astonishment, often used in writing, whereas びっくり is casual and spoken.
ドキッとN1sense 1
ドキッと describes a sudden jolt of the heart, often with a nervous or guilty edge, while びっくり is broader and can be positive, neutral, or negative.

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ドッキリ
びっくり is the general word for being surprised, while ドッキリ stresses a sudden, heart-jolting shock or a hidden-camera style prank.
ぎょっとN1
びっくり is the everyday, general word for being surprised, while ぎょっと describes a sharper, more sudden jolt of shock or fright.
驚おどろきN1
びっくり is a colloquial, onomatopoeic word for surprise often paired with する, while 驚き is a more neutral noun that works in writing and formal speech.
たまげる
びっくりする is the everyday casual word for being surprised, whereas たまげる is rarer and sounds more rustic or emphatic.

吃どもるN1
吃驚（びっくり）shares the kanji 吃 with 吃る but means 'to be surprised' and has nothing to do with speech disfluency.

びっくりUsage75%
gikun (meaning-based reading) or jukujikun
Standard kana spelling; the word is usually written in kana.
ビックリUsage23%
kana-only spelling
Katakana variant, often used for emphasis or in informal writing.
吃驚びっくりUsage2%
rarely-used kanji formgikun (meaning-based reading) or jukujikun
Rare kanji form; a jukujikun reading. Not commonly used.

Mimetic word; the exact origin is uncertain, but it likely imitates the sound or feeling of a sudden jump or start.