朗ほがらか

ほ

が

ら

か

Common wordJLPTN3Freq.FrequencyTop 50,000

Meanings

cheerful; merry; bright; clear and pleasant

Describes a person, manner, mood, laugh, voice, or sound as bright, open, and cheerful. With voices or music it can suggest a clear, pleasant, melodious quality.

彼かの女じょはいつも朗ほがらかに笑わらう。
She always laughs cheerfully.
彼かれは朗ほがらかな声こえであいさつした。
He greeted us in a bright, cheerful voice.

na-adjective

bright; fine; clear

Used descriptively for a bright, clear sky, day, or weather. This weather use is more literary or expressive than everyday phrases such as よく晴れた or 明るい.

朗ほがらかな春はるの日ひに、家か族ぞくで公こう園えんを歩あるいた。
On a bright spring day, we walked through the park as a family.

See all 20 example sentences ›

Usage patterns

〈人ひと〉は朗ほがらかな性せい格かくだsomeone has a cheerful, open personality
彼かの女じょは朗ほがらかな性せい格かくで、みんなに好すかれている。
She has such a cheerful personality that everyone likes her.
朗ほがらかに笑わらうto laugh brightly and cheerfully
彼かれは朗ほがらかに笑わらいながら話はなしを続つづけた。
He kept talking, laughing brightly all the while.
朗ほがらかな声こえa bright, pleasant-sounding voice
電でん話わの向むこうから朗ほがらかな声こえが聞きこえた。
A cheerful, clear voice came from the other end of the phone.
空そらが朗ほがらかに晴はれるthe sky clears to a bright, pleasant blue
今日きょうは空そらが朗ほがらかに晴はれて、絶ぜっ好こうの行こう楽らく日び和よりだ。
Today the sky is bright and clear, perfect weather for an outing.

Kanji

朗melodious, clear, bright

Related words

明あかるいN5
明るい is broader and covers physical brightness as well as cheerfulness, while 朗らか focuses specifically on an open, cheerful quality of a person, mood, or clear sky.
陽よう気きN3sense 1
陽気 suggests lively, upbeat, sociable energy, whereas 朗らか describes a softer, more open-hearted cheerfulness.
晴はれやか sense 1
晴れやか emphasizes a radiant, unclouded look or occasion, while 朗らか more directly describes a person's cheerful disposition or a clear atmosphere.
快かい活かつ sense 1
快活 stresses lively, brisk cheerfulness in behavior, while 朗らか leans toward a gentle, warm brightness of character.

Opposites

陰いん気きN1sense 1
陰気 describes a gloomy, dark mood or atmosphere, the opposite of the bright, cheerful quality of 朗らか.

Don't confuse with

明あきらかN3
明らか (clear, obvious) looks similar in kanji to 朗らか but has an unrelated meaning about clarity of facts, not cheerfulness.

Written forms

朗ほがらかUsage69%
Standard kanji spelling for this na-adjective; lists the high-priority reading ほがらか.
ほがらかUsage29%
ホガラカUsage2%

Etymology

The historical derivation is uncertain. The kanji 朗 is conventionally associated with brightness, clarity, and cheerfulness, matching the modern meanings of 朗らか.