ひっきりなしに

ひ

っ

き

り

な

し

に

JLPTN1Freq.FrequencyTop 100,000

Meanings

adverb

continuously; incessantly; without a break

usually written using kana alone

Describes an action or state that goes on without stopping, often with a nuance of being unceasing or relentless.

Usage patterns

電でん話わがひっきりなしに鳴なるthe phone rings nonstop
朝あさから電でん話わがひっきりなしに鳴なっている。
The phone has been ringing nonstop since morning.
〈人ひと〉がひっきりなしに来くるpeople keep coming one after another without a break
セール中ちゅうは客きゃくがひっきりなしに来くる。
Customers keep coming nonstop during the sale.
〈動どう詞し〉ひっきりなしに続つづくsomething continues without any letup
工こう事じの音おとがひっきりなしに続つづいて眠ねむれなかった。
The construction noise continued nonstop, so I couldn't sleep.

Kanji

引pull, tug, jerk
切cut, cutoff, be sharp
無nothingness, none, ain't

Related words

絶たえ間まなくN1
絶え間なく is a more literary way to say 'without a gap', while ひっきりなしに is colloquial and often carries a nuance of relentless or annoying continuity.
しょっちゅうN2
しょっちゅう is a casual way to say 'all the time', usually about repeated habitual actions, whereas ひっきりなしに stresses an unbroken continuous flow.
次つぎ々つぎにN1
次々に emphasizes things happening one after another in succession, while ひっきりなしに emphasizes there being no break at all between occurrences.
四し六ろく時じ中ちゅうN1
ひっきりなしに describes something happening without pause or interruption, while 四六時中 emphasizes the full day-and-night timespan rather than the lack of gaps.
絶たえずN2
ひっきりなしに is a colloquial way to say 'nonstop,' often for repeated events, while 絶えず is more neutral and can describe steady states too.

Opposites

たまにN4
たまに means 'occasionally, once in a while', the direct opposite of ひっきりなしに's sense of nonstop occurrence.

Etymology

Derived from the verb 引っ切る (ひっきる, 'to cut off') with the negative なし ('without'), literally 'without cutting off', meaning uninterrupted. The exact historical development is uncertain.