だんだん

だ

ん

だ

ん

Common wordJLPTN5Freq.FrequencyTop 10,000

Meanings

usually written using kana alone

Describes a gradual change over time; often used with verbs of change. The 'to' particle is optional and literary.

Refers to physical steps, stairs, or a stepped terrace. Less common than the adverbial sense.

だんだん〈形けい容よう詞し〉くなるto gradually become [adjective]
春はるになると、だんだん暖あたたかくなる。
As spring comes, it gradually gets warmer.
〈場所ばしょ〉〉の段々だんだんを上あがるto climb the steps of [a place]
この神じん社じゃの段だん々だんを上あがると、頂ちょう上じょうに着つく。
If you climb the steps of this shrine, you reach the top.
だんだん〈動どう詞し〉てくるto gradually start to [verb]
勉べん強きょうしているうちに、だんだん日本にほん語ごがわかってきた。
As I studied, I gradually started to understand Japanese.

徐じょ々じょにN3sense 1
だんだん is casual and conversational, while 徐々に is more formal and common in written or formal speech.
次し第だいにN2sense 1
だんだん is everyday speech, whereas 次第に has a more literary feel and stresses a natural, step-by-step progression.
少すこしずつ sense 1
だんだん emphasizes gradual change over time, while 少しずつ emphasizes small, incremental amounts or steps.

急きゅうにN4sense 1
だんだん describes a slow, gradual change, while 急に describes a sudden, abrupt one.

どんどんN4sense 1
だんだん and どんどん sound similar, but だんだん means 'gradually' while どんどん means 'rapidly' or 'one after another'.

だんだんUsage87%
Usually written in kana; the kanji forms 段々 and 段段 are less common.
段だん々だんUsage13%
Kanji form, less common than kana; can be used for both adverbial and noun senses.
段だん段だんUsage1%
Rare kanji variant.

Reduplication of 段 (dan, 'step, grade'), expressing a step-by-step progression. The adverbial sense developed from the idea of moving step by step.