taru-adjective, adverb taking the 'to' particle
silently; mutely; without a word
Describes doing something in concentrated silence, often with a sense of diligence or absorption. Commonly used with と (黙々と).
He continued working silently.
I read a book silently in the library.
He kept working silently and steadily.
My father was working the fields silently and diligently.
The soldiers marched on in silence.
一心不乱 stresses single-minded concentration without necessarily implying silence, while 黙々 specifically highlights doing something quietly and without talking.
黙る is a verb meaning 'to fall silent' or 'stop talking', while 黙々 is a taru-adjective/adverb describing the manner of doing an activity in silence.
quietly and assiduously
Standard kanji spelling.
Non-repetition kanji variant; less common in modern writing.
A reduplicated form of 黙, “silence,” used adverbially to describe acting continuously without speaking.