ぺらぺら

ぺ

ら

ぺ

ら

Common wordJLPTN3Freq.FrequencyTop 20,000

ぺらぺらする · noun or participle which takes 'suru'

Form	Positive	Negative
Dictionary	ぺらぺらする	ぺらぺらしない
Polite	ぺらぺらします	ぺらぺらしません
Past polite	ぺらぺらしました	ぺらぺらしませんでした
Past	ぺらぺらした	ぺらぺらしなかった
Te-form	ぺらぺらして	ぺらぺらしないで
Desire	ぺらぺらしたい	ぺらぺらしたくない
Potential	ぺらぺらできる	ぺらぺらできない
Passive	ぺらぺらされる	ぺらぺらされない
Causative	ぺらぺらさせる	ぺらぺらさせない
Causative passive	ぺらぺらさせられる	ぺらぺらさせられない
Volitional	ぺらぺらしよう
Polite volitional	ぺらぺらしましょう
Imperative	ぺらぺらしろ	ぺらぺらするな
Conditional	ぺらぺらすれば	ぺらぺらしなければ
Tara conditional	ぺらぺらしたら	ぺらぺらしなかったら

Meanings

adverb, adverb taking the 'to' particle, na-adjective

fluently (speaking a foreign language)

onomatopoeic or mimetic word

Describes speaking a foreign language smoothly and without hesitation; often used with 話す or 喋る.

彼かの女じょは英えい語ごがぺらぺらだ。
She speaks English fluently.
日本にほん語ごをぺらぺら話はなせるようになりたい。
I want to become able to speak Japanese fluently.

adverb, adverb taking the 'to' particle

incessantly; glibly; garrulously

onomatopoeic or mimetic word

Used for talking a lot, often in a smooth but possibly shallow or nonstop manner; can carry a slightly negative nuance of chattering on.

彼かれは自じ分ぶんのことばかりぺらぺらしゃべっている。
He keeps chattering on about himself.

adverb, adverb taking the 'to' particle

flipping through pages quickly

onomatopoeic or mimetic word

Describes the action or sound of turning pages rapidly, one after another.

彼かれは本ほんをぺらぺらめくった。
He flipped through the book quickly.

noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no', na-adjective, adverb, noun or participle which takes 'suru'

thin; flimsy; weak

onomatopoeic or mimetic word

Describes paper, cloth, or other materials that are thin and lack substance; can also describe weak or unconvincing arguments.

この紙かみはぺらぺらで破やぶれやすい。
This paper is thin and tears easily.
彼かれの言いい訳わけはぺらぺらだった。
His excuse was flimsy.

See all 30 example sentences ›

Usage patterns

〈言げん語ご〉をぺらぺら話はなすto speak a language fluently
彼かれは英えい語ごをぺらぺらと話はなす。
He speaks English fluently.
〈事こと〉をぺらぺらしゃべるto chatter on incessantly about something
彼かの女じょは秘ひ密みつをぺらぺらしゃべってしまった。
She blabbed the secret without any hesitation.
ページをぺらぺらめくるto flip through pages quickly
雑ざっ誌しのページをぺらぺらとめくった。
I flipped quickly through the pages of the magazine.
ぺらぺらな〈物もの〉a flimsy, thin (object)
この生き地じはぺらぺらで、すぐ破やぶれそうだ。
This fabric is so thin it looks like it will tear right away.

Related words

すらすらN3sense 1
すらすら also means smoothly, but is used mainly for writing or performing a task without pause, while ぺらぺら emphasizes oral fluency in a foreign language.
べらべら sense 2
べらべら is similar to ぺらぺら in meaning 'chattering', but sounds more negative or careless, and is less commonly used for foreign-language fluency.
流りゅう暢ちょうN1sense 1
流暢 is a formal, written-register word for fluent speech, while ぺらぺら is a casual, everyday mimetic word with the same meaning.

Opposites

たどたどしい sense 1
たどたどしい describes halting, faltering speech, the opposite of speaking ぺらぺら (fluently).
厚あついN5sense 4
厚い describes something thick, the opposite of ぺらぺら, which describes paper or cloth that is thin and flimsy.

Don't confuse with

ぱらぱらN1sense 3
ぱらぱら sounds similar to ぺらぺら but describes light scattering (like drizzle or a few pages turning), not the rapid, continuous page-flipping ぺらぺら conveys.

Written forms

ぺらぺらUsage26%
Most common kana spelling; this reading has high priority.
ペラペラUsage74%
Katakana variant, often used for emphasis or in informal writing.

Etymology

Onomatopoeic/mimetic word; the reduplicated sound ぺらぺら imitates light, rapid, or thin sounds and movements, extended metaphorically to fluent speech and thin materials.