シクシク

• Reading: しくしく
• Romaji: shiku shiku
• Pronunciation: /ɕi.kɯ.ɕi.kɯ/

Meaning

Sobbing or weeping quietly with genuine sadness.

シクシク represents soft, sincere crying — the kind of sobbing where tears flow silently or with quiet gasps. Unlike メソメソ (whimpering with a self-pitying nuance), シクシク evokes sympathy. The crying feels genuine and heartfelt. It's commonly used in literature, manga, and everyday speech to describe someone moved to tears by sadness, a touching story, or emotional pain. It can also describe a dull, persistent stomachache (お腹がシクシク痛い).

Examples

1. 映画見てシクシク泣いちゃった。 I ended up quietly sobbing while watching the movie.
2. 隣の部屋からシクシク泣く声が聞こえた。 I could hear someone softly crying from the next room.
3. あの場面はシクシクくるよね、毎回泣く。 That scene gets me every time — I cry without fail.

Usage Guide

Context: emotional situations, storytelling, manga/anime

Tone: sympathetic, sad

Do Say

• あの小説の最後シクシク泣いた (I sobbed at the end of that novel)
• お腹がシクシク痛い (I have a nagging stomach pain)

Don't Say

• 楽しい場面で「シクシク」は合わない (Using 'shiku shiku' in a happy context doesn't fit — it's for sadness)

Common Mistakes

• Confusing with メソメソ — シクシク is sympathetic crying, メソメソ implies self-pity
• Not knowing the stomachache meaning — シクシク痛い describes a persistent dull ache

Origin & History

Onomatopoeia imitating the sound of quiet sobbing and gasping breaths between tears. The しく sound mimics the hiccup-like rhythm of soft crying. Also used for persistent dull pain, mimicking the nagging sensation.

Cultural Context

Era: Traditional onomatopoeia

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal

Regional notes: Used across all of Japan. Extremely common in manga where it appears as a sound effect during emotional scenes.