Japanese word

瞬き

Pronunciation

Romajimabataki

Meaning

  • nounblink

Example

彼女は驚いて、何度も瞬きをしました。kano jo wa odoro i te nan do mo mabata ki o shi ma shi ta

She was surprised and blinked several times.

Illustration for 瞬き (blink)

More examples

画面を長く見ると、瞬きが少なくなりがちです。ga men o naga ku mi ru to mabata ki ga suku na ku na ri ga chi de su

You tend to blink less when you look at a screen for a long time.

Core concept

Describes the brief closing and reopening of the eyelids, usually as an automatic action but sometimes as a deliberate signal.

Common phrases

  • 瞬きをするmabata ki o su ru

    blink

  • 瞬きが少ないmabata ki ga suku na i

    blink infrequently

  • 瞬きの回数mabata ki no kai sū

    number of blinks

Similar words

ウインクuinku: A deliberate closing of one eye, often used as a signal.

Definition in Japanese

まぶたを瞬間的に閉じてすぐ開く動作。通常は両目で無意識に行うが、片目で合図にすることもある。ma bu ta o shun kan teki ni to ji te su gu hira ku dō sa tsū jō wa ryō me de mu i shiki ni okona u ga kata me de ai zu ni su ru ko to mo a ru

Word origin

The noun 瞬き (mabataki) comes from the verb 瞬く (mabataku), using its noun form made by changing the final -ku to -ki.

Usage tips

  • A blinking cursor shows how blink extends beyond eye movement to repeated brief changes between visible and invisible.

Other meanings

  • winknoun

Related words

  • 瞬くshibatatakublinkverb

Word lists with this word