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道Nihongo Path

Word 1822 of 4449

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こつこつ

steadily, diligently

By Nihongo PathUpdated

Examples

  1. こつこつ貯金した。

    こつこつちょきんした。

    I saved up bit by bit.

  2. 毎日こつこつ勉強を続けた。

    まいにちこつこつべんきょうをつづけた。

    I kept studying steadily every day.

  3. 地味だが、こつこつと努力を積み重ねてきた。

    じみだが、こつこつとどりょくをつみかさねてきた。

    It is unglamorous, but he has built up his efforts patiently.

Common patterns

こつこつ働く
to work away steadily
こつこつと努力する
to make patient, steady efforts
こつこつ積み重ねる
to build up bit by bit

Memory tip

It is the same こつこつ as the sound of small repeated taps, which is exactly the image: tiny efforts landing over and over. Set it against ばりばり, which is high-energy output rather than patient accumulation.

Quick check

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What does こつこつ mean?