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のろま (noroma) Japanese meaning: blockhead | Kotomora
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He's such a slowpoke, so I'm always kept waiting.
With such a slow way of doing things, it'll be dark before you finish.
Related words のろま describes someone inherently slow-witted or clumsy, while ぐず emphasizes dawdling, indecisiveness, or complaining.
とんま is a similarly teasing term for a foolish or scatterbrained person, while のろま focuses specifically on slowness.
まぬけ mocks someone for being careless or stupid, whereas のろま mocks someone for being slow to act or think.
Written forms のろま Usage 84%
Usually written in kana; the kanji forms 鈍間, 野呂間, and 野呂松 are rare.
ノロマ Usage 14%
kana-only spelling
Katakana spelling used for emphasis or in casual writing.
鈍間のろま Usage 2%
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji form; the first character 鈍 means 'dull' or 'slow'.
野の 呂ろ 間ま
Etymology From the early-modern comic puppet called 野呂間, associated with puppeteer 野呂松勘兵衛; the puppet’s slow, foolish character produced the term for a sluggish or dull person.
のろま is a blunt, everyday word for a slow-witted person, while 蛍光灯 in this sense is dated slang making a joking comparison to a flickering fluorescent light.
Don't confuse with 鈍い is an adjective for general dullness or slowness (of a knife, reflexes, etc.), while のろま is a noun/adjectival noun that labels a person as a dunce.
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji form.
野の 呂ろ 松ま
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji form.
